


Blossom // Yumikuri

by lilnepp



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: AU, F/F, Living Together, Magical Girl Christa Lenz AU, a goddamn mess, a lotta lowkey beruani and jeanmarco, cool beans, is what it is, magical girl, theres a lot of minor shipping going on in the background, what even is this, yumikuri cuddles now included
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-02-07
Updated: 2016-03-26
Packaged: 2018-03-10 22:28:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 10
Words: 24,290
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3305666
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/lilnepp/pseuds/lilnepp
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>What happens when you're stuck in a dead-end, working 3 jobs and barely have enough to pay the rent? The heavens send you a Magical Girl, of course!</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter One

**Author's Note:**

  * For [charlotte amanda and krista](https://archiveofourown.org/gifts?recipient=charlotte+amanda+and+krista).



“ _And stay out!”_

‘Another day, another job,’ I thought as I slammed the cafe door. Fired _again_ , unsurprisingly.

 But it’s not like I _needed_ that money. It’s not like I _thrived_ off of it.

Sometimes I wondered if I ever had a guardian angel, or if it was all a load of shit parents tell you to help your naive eight year-old self sleep better at night. Either way, they’ve been non-existent pretty much my whole damn life.

I stepped out of the old coffee shop, that was so direly in need of renovation, and out onto the crowded streets. It was quite busy for a late Sunday night; the night when most people are calming down from the hectic weekends or settling in at home with their families, preparing for the week ahead.

Family. What a load of bullshi-

“Watch where you’re goin’!” A man yelled at me, honking his car horn viciously as I ran in front of him and his vehicle.

As soon as I crossed safely ( _sort of_ ), I walked a couple blocks more. I’ve always lived quite close to my workplaces. I preferred not to leave my comfort zone, and worked with people I knew. Or people I didn’t have to know for longer than 5 minutes.

A pet shop, a bar, telemarketing. If you can name an occupation, I’ve probably worked it at one point. And, coincidentally, I happen to work at all three.

It _was_ four jobs, until tonight, when I spilt a steaming latte on a hand-sy customer. I didn’t even care that I got fired. Even after telling him once that I wasn’t interested, twice that I didn’t like men, and three times to blatantly _piss off_ , he still wasn’t getting the message.

Oh well. I heard the ice cream parlour nearby was hiring.

My fingers closed around my key-ring as I began the trek up the 5-storey stairs to the third floor, where an envelope was sticking out of my mail slot. I forced it out, some of the rust from the old box coming off onto the paper.

_To: My Daughter_

_Apt. 11, Trost Apartments, STOHESS CITY_

I stared blankly at the letter, leaning on the broken door with enough force for it to swing open. I flicked the switch, standing in the dark hallway as I waited for the light to turn on. A spark flickered, illuminating the room for one second, before a small explosion of sparks erupted.

 I exhaled heavily through my nose, banging on the wall next to me.

“ _Reiner!”_ I shouted, waiting impatiently for a response.

My neighbour’s door opened reluctantly, the door jammer refusing to give way. He forced it back, however, and searched hazily for the source of the noise before his eyes settled on me.

“What do you want at _this hour_?” He asked me, eyes squinting as they adjusted to the green-yellow luminescent lighting of the building’s third-floor hallway.

“My light’s busted again.” I announced, before adding “And it’s only 11:30.”

“I’ve got Annie and Bertoldt over.” He sighed.

“You’ve got them _over?_ They practically _live with you!”_ I exclaimed exasperatedly.

“Don’t do this to me, Ymir. Not now.”

“Can you fix it tomorrow?” I asked frantically as he shut his apartment door.

“Good _night,_ Ymir.”

I groaned loudly as his door clicked, a sound I’d come to know as the door locking whenever he had a problem he didn’t want to face. Big _or_ small.

Making my way through the hallway without a light was no easy task. Thanks to the building’s structure, the hallways were long and uneven. The walls were some ugly brick wallpaper, of everything. Some people were given permits to renovate, but they came at a cost. Generally, the people on the fifth floor were capable of paying for renovations.

Once I had staggered my way to the main room, I flicked that switch, fingers crossed that it would worked.

My superstition proved successful as the lights flickered before settling dimly.

I untied my apron and threw it on the floor, taking a plastic cup from my kitchen bench top and filling it with tap water, before lifting it to my lips.

 _The sweet taste of dirty water,_ I thought as I spat it back into the sink.

_Looks like no shower for another night._

I placed the plastic cup lazily on the edge of the sink, watching it as it fell into the sink with a thud, before flopping onto the sofa, holding a pillow to my face.

“Why is my life so hard?”I asked to no one in particular, my voice muffled by the pillow.

Suddenly, a bright, vast light filled the room, and I covered my eyes. Along with this, a loud explosion sounded.

_Oh my God. We’re being bombed._

I rolled off of the bed, shaken from the explosion, as I heard a metal _clang!_ and lifted my head from the floor.

I noticed something odd on my firescape. It was... large. And blue. And... blonde?

There’s a girl. On my firescape. A girl. My initial reaction is to check if she’s hot, but then to also ask if she’s ok.

I stepped around some empty pizza boxes and dirty laundry, suddenly embarrassed about the mess, and yanked open the ‘sliding doors’- which let out a deafening screech as I did so.

“Excuse me, are you hot-OK. Are you ok?” I asked, noticing the girl’s puffy and sparkly dress.

I sighed. She was probably a cosplayer who tried to re-enact some anime on the rooftop.

“Yes, I’m fine,” The girl coughed. She had a really high-pitched voice. Like a bell or something. That’s how people describe voices, right?

“You shouldn’t try to re-enact Sailor Mars or whatever from the rooftop. That’s five stories high, you could’ve died.” I scolded lamely, staring at her as she got up.

The girl was short. Extremely. She looked about 4”9, and she had long blonde hair, pulled back into a ponytail, which was almost hidden by the huge white bow on her head. Her dress was intricate, blue with little white details and bows all over. She was wearing some white and blue boots, with little puffballs hanging on the sides.

Overall, she looked adorable.

“You’re Ymir, correct?” She asked, smiling up at me. I was a little confused, maybe a little scared. How did this tiny cosplayer-girl know my name, and if she knew I was here, how did she know where I lived?

“I’ll take that as a yes. I’m Christa!” The girl announced, throwing her arms to the side.

“...and I’m here to help you get your life back on track.” She continued, slipping under my arm and into my house.

What the hell. What the hell.

“Thanks... for the offer. But my life is fine.” I detested, putting a hand on my hip as she reluctantly sat on my sofa, legs neatly tucked in and hands in her lap. She looked around cautiously.

“Uh huh. I’m starving, what have you got to eat?” She asked, eyes lighting up.

“Hey, I never even said you could stay here! Go back to your convention or whatever it is you people do!” I almost shouted, anger bubbling up. This girl felt like walking criticism. She didn’t even need to say anything for me to know she didn’t particularly ‘like’ the environment around her, and she thinks my life is off the rails? And _now_ she’s asking for _FOOD?!_

“Nope. You’re leaving. Right now.” I told her firmly, pointing to the firescape. She looked confused for a moment, before changing her expression to a sad one.

“But... I’m here to help you?” She asked questioningly. “I can’t go anywhere else. They’ll make me go back...” Christa looked to the ground sadly, moving her feet a little. I couldn’t help but feel a little bad for her; whoever was going to make her go back to wherever she was from was obviously someone she didn’t want to see again.

And if she didn’t want to see someone again, I couldn’t blame her. I’ve had my fair share of people I don’t like.

“Three nights. You have three nights, and then you’re outta here.” I explained, holding up three fingers. Her face lit up like a Christmas tree.

“Thank you so much! I won’t let you down!”

~\/~

“The bathroom is over there, you have to flush twice if you’re going to use it.”

She had this confused look on her face, as if she’d never heard of a toilet in her life.

“The toilet. What, are you from Mars?” I asked sarcastically, opening the door to show her.

“Well, it’s not far off...” She muttered, looking down.

“You can sleep on the couch. You might want to go home and change out of your costume, though.”

“Costume?” She asked.

“God, do you know anything?” I asked, opening the door to my bedroom and closing it eagerly, ready to get away from this girl.

“Goodnight, Ymir!” She chimed from the other side of the door. I ignored her, changing into a shirt and bed shorts, when I heard a loud noise.

I bet she didn’t flush twice.

I yanked open the door, but only to find that my main room was completely clean; I could even see the floorboards’ oak colour properly. The dirty clothes were in a small pile in front of my bathroom, empty pizza boxes stacked up in a corner and the sofa cushions fluffed and sitting neatly on the sofa, ready for someone to lie down and sleep.

It hasn’t even been a full minute since I went into my room, and she’s managed to make the room look neater than I could ever make it look in 5 hours.

I heard the sink tap turn on, and stared at the bathroom door anxiously. Whatever this girl is, it isn’t human. She exited through it only moments later, in some light pyjamas and her hair in two pigtails.

“How...?! How?!” I yelled, hands in my hair as I looked around at the clean space.

“Oh, did I do something wrong?!” She panicked, a hand flying up to her mouth.

“No, you’re doing everything right,” I groaned. “And that’s the problem!”

“S-should I stop doing things?” She asked frantically, looking like she was going to cry.

“How did you do the hair thing?! And the clothes thing?!” I kept yelling, until someone next door banged on the wall. I’d say Reiner, but it was more forceful than usual. Probably Annie.

“Are you an alien?!” I whisper-shouted, eyes wide.

“N-no?” She responded confusedly, slowly walking around me. She kept eye contact until she got to the sofa, where she sat down and waited for me to leave.

As I lied down in bed that night, I had one thought;

_There’s a cute girl on my sofa._


	2. Chapter Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Basically there's a pet store and a magical girl and that's it really.

_The colours danced around in front of me; intertwined and collided like waves. The whole once-dark space had lit up with her presence, stars glistening and far-off planets glowing like dim lights. She was there - orchestrating the whole thing. Her hands moved rhythmically, swaying with the kaleidoscope of colours and creating new ones, almost as if she were sculpting. Her eyes were warm, inviting. Signalling for me to join her._

_I stepped forward dizzily, reaching my hand out towards her as the invisible floor beneath me begun to give way. For some reason, unknown to me, I started to run. I felt almost like I couldn't leave her, like not reaching her in time would send me to a black abyss forever._

_The smile on her face failed to cease, eyes now curious and excited. The colours began to enclose around her, blocking her for my view. I tried to scream her name, but it came out silent._

_I reached out a final time before an odd falling sensation had struck me._

_I fell through space._

_~|/~_

I shot out of the blankets and sat upright. My head felt sore, like it was going to burst. I lifted a hand to it, taking note of the excessive heat. What was that dream about? I couldn't remember.

I heard some noise coming from the kitchen, and decided I was too damn tired to deal with an intruder.

Except, she _wasn't_ an intruder.

I pushed the blankets that confined me to the edge of the bed, standing and tugging my shirt down before yawning loudly. I stretched for a few moments, bracing myself to meet the odd girl who had stayed overnight in my apartment loungeroom.

As I twisted the rusty knob on the door, (of which the wood was peeling. I'd have to work a couple more hours to pay to get it fixed) I took a deep breath in. I opened the door as I did so, and when I let it out, I groaned so _fuckin' loud_ you could probably hear it from Norway.

The room connected to the kitchen had undergone a massive change from the last state I saw it in. The sofa was pushed towards the kitchen, pillows missing. There were empty cereal boxes and chip packets scattered along the floor, along with some other discarded food remnants and packagings.

As I slowly tiptoed around the new mess, I thought about one thing; how I was utterly pissed off about the destruction of the place. It hadn't even been clean for a night. And it I didn't even make the goddamn mess!!

Not only was the living room in utter disarray, but the kitchen took a beating.

"What the fu-" I paused, seeing my 'guest' cross-legged on the floor, digging lucky charms out of a box with her bare hands.

_HER BARE HANDS._

"Oh, you're up!" Christa fretted, standing hastily and dropping the box in the process. She stared at it as she wiped the crumbs off of her skirt.

"I-I'm so sorry, I meant to clean up, I did! It was just... I was so hungry. I haven't eaten since I got here..." She trailed off, eyes scanning the mess.

I stared at her tiredly. I haven't even been up for five _goddamn minutes_.

"I was so hungry, and I didn't want to leave the room. I really am sorry, ma'am." She apologised again, bowing this time.

"You don't need to do that." I assured her, staring at her. "And just call me Ymir. You know, the way you did last night. And none of this 'ma'am' shit." I told her, kicking at a plastic bowl near my foot.

"I'm going into work today, so if you want to go home and get clothes or something..." I trailed off, pulling my hair back and tying it up.

"Work? Can I come?" Christa asked, picking up a box of cheez-its and sitting it on the kitchen benchtop and watching as it fell, mostly due to a dented corner.

"Uh... sure. It gets boring though."

"Oh, I don't mind. I don't get bored." She reassured me, smiling, dimples showing.

Don't do that.

"Well, whatever. Be ready in 10 minutes."

~\/~

On the walk to work, I figured Christa was one of those glass-half-full people, because the girl was skipping and smiling and greeting people like she was a puppy going outside for the first time.

"Where do-" She started, narrowly missing a fire hydrant.

"-you work?"

I looked down. She was grinning up like it was the most interesting thing in the whole damn world.

"A pet store."

"What do they sell at a pet store?" She questioned, waving at a homeless person as we walked past. He spat at her.

I stared at her worriedly. Where has this girl been for 90% of her life? Prison?

"...Dogs. And cats. And fish." I explained reluctantly, making a sharp turn at a corner.

"Are they good?" Christa questioned, hands straight out to the side as she moved to walk on top of the gutter and attempted to keep her balance.

"They'll probably shut you up, if that's what you mean." I replied back irritatedly, shoving my hands in my pockets and pulled out the store keys.

As we continued to walk, many people eyed Christa curiously, some people even stopping us to ask about her stupid cosplay, which she hadn't taken off. I couldn't understand why she had worn such a huge, obnoxious thing into the streets, especially with that giant bow on the back.

I wondered if she was even going to fit through the goddamn door.

As we came upon the tiny pet store, built half into the ground, I led Christa down the stairs and into the door. Which she did fit in, by the way. Barely.

The first sound I heard was the 'Welcome' bell and then Sasha's voice, but she held up her finger as she spoke into the phone.

"Uh huh. Saturday, 8 PM. If you're late, I will kill you. Love you, Connie. Bye." Sasha finished up, tossing me my name tag. Which, unfuckinfortunately had 'Katelynn' written across it. Because apparently 'Ymir' is too difficult to spell.

They even gave me the worst possible spelling. It couldn't have been 'Caitlin' or 'Katelin'. Nope.

Katelynn.

I sighed as I pinned it to my shirt, looking around for my guest, who was marvelling at the angel fish in the fish tanks up the back.

"Who's your friend?" Sasha asked, counting through some money.

"She fell off my roof, so I let her stay the night. She wanted to hang out here all day with me, so I didn't see why not. I'm cool."

Sasha laughed.

"You? Cool? That's like saying Armin Arlert is hot."

She snorted a couple times before putting the cash back into the register.

"Christa!" I called, fiddling with the hem of my shirt.

She raced through the small half aisles until she was next to me.

"This is Sasha." I informed her, leaving them alone to restock the shelves into the shape of a dick.

'Cause why not.

"I'm Christa." I heard the smaller girl introduce, and Sasha began showing her around. Not like there was much to show, though. This was a tiny store.

"Upstairs is the stock room and out back is where we keep the puppies- Ymir!" Sasha exclaimed, putting her hands over Christa's eyes.

I cackled as I took apart the dick display and put them in the correct spaces.

"Kids won't get it! Kids are dumb!" I argued, laughing as Sasha knocked down what was remaining.

"God, I'd fire you if you weren't my friend." She muttered with a forgiving tone.

The day passed on slowly after that. We let Christa into the back room a couple times, but we had a lot of customers during the 12-2pm rush. In fact, so many customers that we made over what we needed.

Which meant extra ca-ching for us. Fuckin' sweet.

It was around 4 when Christa asked if we could see the puppies.

"Yeah, that's fine." Sasha affirmed from across the room. Eavesdropping. That, or our conversation was being broadcast across the small room. Small world, really.

"Just make sure you feed them. I forgot to this morning. And then you can go home."

I stood slowly in contrast to Christa's hyperactivity, in an attempt to piss her off.

I don't think she even cared.

Walking slowly, I led her out to the back room, where we kept birds and guinea pigs and other shit like that.

"Is that a puppy?" She kept asking eagerly, pointing to a hamster.

I've only known her for a day, but I'm honestly really worried for this girl.

I grabbed her wrist and pushed her forward towards a door that said 'Animals' and stuck a key in the lock.

As the door opened, the dogs all sat straight up.

I decided it would be fun to let out all the small dogs and let them trample her. Maybe. I take joy in other people's misery.

When I opened a glass display window for a litter of puppies, she fell back and laughed happily when they walked all over her, and it made me feel a little bit happy.

"Is this a puppy?" Christa asked between squinting her eyes shut as one would walk near her face or neck or lied down on her hair.

"Is the sky blue?"

She and the puppies stopped as she looked up at me.

"Yes. These are puppies." I confirmed. Some of the other dogs began howling as I walked over to the food storage.

~\/~

"That was fun." Christa said gleefully, running up the stairs ahead. I had ignored most of what she said for the trip home, but it looked like I was finally going to break that streak.

"Don't you ever get tired?"

"When can we see them again?!"

The girl was covered head-to-toe in dog hair; it was hard to answer her seriously.

"Marchtember oneteenth."

"When's that?"

"The fifth of Novecember."

"How long till then?"

"Four million hours."

She paused on the top step and thought for a second, putting a hand to her mouth curiously.

"That's a long time." She concluded, looking sad. I sighed heavily, pulling my hair around my shoulder.

"Next Wednesday at 3."

"That's not four million hours. That's 192, at least."

I ignored her as I walked past and stepped onto the third level. Pulling my keys out of my pocket, I counted the various keys until I found the one to my apartment.

Upon opening the door, I discovered Reiner still hadn't fixed my broken lightbulb.

I closed my eyes and breathed in and out.

"Reiner!" I yelled, knocking on my neighbour's door. I repeated this several times and was about to give up when the door swung open.

"What do you want." A low voice asked irritatedly, the words more of a statement than a question.

"Why does it smell in there?" I asked, peering over Annie's head and through the narrow doorway.

"I'm cooking meth. What do you want?" Annie replied sarcastically, and looked so apathetic that she might fall over and sleep right in front of me.

"I knew you three were up to something. Where's Reiner?"

"He and Bertoldt are out somewhere. Why do you care?" She continued to ask, pulling the drawstrings on her hoodie with one hand and leaning on the doorframe with the other.

"'Cause your good friend Dickhole was supposed to fix my hallway light today." I replied, opening my apartment door for Christa so she could go inside.

"He's not reliable. You know that." Annie continued to converse, keeping her responses short and choppy. I didn't really like her either, so it was fine with me.

"Is it blown? Badly?"

"Yeah." I answered as she disappeared into a room and came back out with a toolbox.

"I'll fix it now if it means you'll stop coming over here."

Thanks, Annie.

"Nothing will stop me from trying to enjoy the company of my favourite shorty."

She shot me an icy glare, handed me the tool box and slammed the door in my face.

Again, thanks, Annie.

I sat the toolbox outside Reiner's apartment door and headed through my own as Christa stared at the mess.

"I know, it's bad. You really beat this place up last night." I told her nonchalantly, rubbing the back of my neck as I deliberated over when I was going to clean up.

"I can fix it right now." Christa told me, staring into my eyes as if she was looking for approval.

She grabbed a hold of the little heart on her choker and pushed the centre, when suddenly the whole room turned white.

I could see very light colours moving together and bright lights and possibly even a few stars as everything flashed before me.

It was over in seconds.

I gazed at the room, mouth open in shock.

The room was absolutely spotless, everything in its right place and even some crystal-looking bouquets sitting around.

I fell backwards onto my ass and stared at Christa.

"Wh-what was that? When did you do the... the thing, and the things- what just-"

"I told you on the way home, when we stopped in front of the flower shop. You said, 'What do you do for a living?'" She trailed off, expecting me to finish for her. When I didn't answer, she did it for me.

"I'm a Magical Girl."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi lol i know its literally been 2 months but ive been occupied with studying and exams and stuffs but its ok bc here it is!! ur long awaited second chapter (long awaited by like 4 people lol) . apparently ao3 hates wattpad so the italics didnt transfer and i couldnt be bothered doing it tonight so ill fix it some  
> other time. I'm not thinking of a third chapter for a bit, but I promise there will be one!!! anyway goodbye!!! hope u enjoyed it!!


	3. Chapter Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> a rushed boring filler chapter featuring a supermarket and advertising

' _Where are you going?'_

_The girl did nothing, and instead smiled sweetly as she ducked behind the picturesque waterfall, her iridescent image becoming distorted by the gushing water._

_I wanted to follow her, but there was a gap between the waterfall stones and the desert rocks I was standing on. In between these rocks, at the very bottom of the canyon-like structure, were millions upon millions of tiny, sharp spikes._

_I wasn't worried about not making the jump; it was easily a metre, so I probably wouldn't even need a run-up. The only thing that worried me was losing sight of the girl who had all but stayed in her spot in front of the waterfall._

_I walked backwards, hitching up my long, flowy skirt and turning as I began to run, before stopping. Spinning around, the girl was now waiting in front of the waterfall again. She looked sad, like she was going to cry, and reached out her hand._

_I began the run-up._

_30 metres. 25 metres. 20 metres._

_The wind felt amazing as I started to go faster, but it started to restrict me and hold me back. I stopped and looked at my hands in a sense of fright, only to find that they were disintegrating. The same thing was happening to my feet, too._

_I looked up, only to see that the girl had begun running towards me. She cleared the gap easily, but kept running. She faulted on some rocks, but kept running. She began disintegrating, too, but she kept running._

_She ran until she had disappeared completely._

~\/~

"So, what exactly is a 'Magical Girl'?" I asked calmly, remembering last night's shock. After Christa's revelation, I decided I was too tired to be scared or worried and so we went to sleep. She promised we'd talk about it in the morning.

We were sitting cross-legged on the floor across from each other, with a bowl of Cheetos in the middle. I was using the back of an old letter to write down anything important.

"Well, I don't know what it really means, but I know it's what I am. I was sent to help you, and that's what I have to do."

"So you don't have any family or anything on Earth?"

Christa went silent.

"I know there's other magical girls. The limit is supposed to be one-per-city, but I've already seen two, and I think they've seen me too." She confessed, looking concerned.

 _One per city_ , I wrote.

"Two? Who are they?!" I rushed, leaning in towards her. She shuffled back a bit.

"I don't want to say. It might mean trouble for you or me, and I don't want to hurt or be hurt.

"That's about all I know. Sorry."

We sat in silence.

"So this whole ' _helping others_ ' thing is hard-coded into you, huh?" I started, trying to find out as much as I could. I'd never even dreamed something like this could happen to a piece of shit like me, but here we are. I had to know more.

"I... I guess so? It's more like a strong desire than a need."

_Likes helping people._

"Let's talk about Magical Girl Land. Where'd you come from?"

She looked uncomfortable.

"I only remember a few things. I know I sewed this dress," Christa informed me, looking down at her dress like a proud mother.

Sews dresses.

"I also know it was like a personal void. But that's about it. I'm hoping if I can meet the other magical girls, I might be able to find out more."

_Personal void._

I took in this new information, sat the envelope and pen next to me and then pushed my hands on the ground for support and stood up.

"Well, lets go find them. Are they someone you've already met?" I asked as I grabbed my jacket from the sofa and watched a cockroach scurry out of it. I gave it a shake, away from my body. Two more cockroaches fell out of the coat. Was there an orgy in my coat I wasn't invited to?

Christa had picked one up by the antenna - fascinated - and put it in the palm of her hand. Disgusting.

"Maybe." She replied cheerfully, closing her fingers around the bug gently. _DISGUSTING_.

"That doesn't help."

"Well, I'm sorry, but I don't want to help with this. I don't want you - or me - to get hurt, and I intend on going through with it!" Christa snapped. She looked remorseful immediately afterwards, and apologised under her breath.

"Well, what do you want to do today? Read a book?" I suggested, putting my coat down and sitting down on my sofa, praying so hard, with all my internal might that no cockroach orgies were happening in my furniture.

"What's a 'book'?" Christa asked.

"I'll take that as a no, then." I replied in a bored tone, finding the cheap TV remote wedged deep in between the sofa cushions and flicking the TV on.

It was turned up to full volume, and Christa jumped 5 feet into the air when it sounded throughout the apartment. I got a hard knock on the wall, which was probably Annie being shitty about something again.

I giggled (wow, what a _girly word_ ) at Christa's response.

"It's just the TV, space girl." I informed her, surfing through the channels.

Who even came up with that? 'Channel surfing'? That sounds so stupid. It probably came from the 90's. Next you'll be hearing about the 'Rad radio' or the 'Awesome airwaves', which is the same thing. I just reworded it because I ca-

"What does it do?" Christa asked, moving a filthy cereal bowl from the free spot on the sofa and sitting on it.

"Jesus, you really are out of this world."

She had a cross look on her face.

"Just because I dropped out of the sky," She muttered, but something immediately caught her attention. I turned to face the TV, and some kids show was on.

She was completely captivated by it, eyes wide and focused on the screen. It was like a kid on Christmas.

"So space girl likes cartoons." I said, waving my hand in front of her eyes.

"You'll have square eyes before you know it. You only get an hour of TV a day."

There was a knock at the door.

I got up from my seat, watching Christa until I got to the hallway and bumped into a fucking wall.

As I held my hand up to my forehead, I twisted the knob.

"Ah, if it isn't my favourite shorty!" I exclaimed sarcastically, watching Annie's eyes half-lid even further, almost like a snake or a lizard. Maybe she was actually cold-blooded.

"Here to fix my hallway light? If you or Reiner don't do it, I'm gonna have to ask Levi on the second floor and you know he's gonna charge me."

She glared at me before forcefully slamming an envelope on the ground, and heading back into Reiner's apartment.

"Keep it short and cynical, Annie!" I called as I bent down to pick it up, and checked the name on the front.

_To: My daughter_

I closed the front door slowly as I eyed the letter. That makes three this month.

With a slight sense of regret, I tossed it into the closet near the entrance, quickly shoving the door shut so the huge pile of shit in there wouldn't fall out.

"Christa," I called, going back through the hallway. I grabbed my coat from the armrest and turned off the TV, much to Christa's magical dismay.

"Put your coat on, we have to go to the supermarket."

"I don't have a coat." She admitted, looking down.

"You decided to come help me in late fall, and you didn't even bring a Goddamn coat. Unbelievable. You can use one of mine."

~\/~

Christa was doing her skip-thing again as we walked down the street. Wearing my jacket that was 4 sizes too big on her and looked like she had bought it from a garage sale.

Which is actually where _I_ got it from.

"Do they have puppies at the supermarket?" Christa asked enthusiastically, suddenly grabbing my hand and swinging it around.

"Christa, if there were puppies everywhere, no one would be sad. Ever. Some countries might not even be bankrupt." I explained sarcastically as I let go of her hand. Putting my hands on her shoulders, I guided her towards the road and away from the dirty buildings. I can't even afford a new couch, how in hell was I supposed to cover this girl's medical needs if she got asbestos?

"What's bankrupt?" Christa asked, playing with the large, folded up sleeves on the jacket she was wearing.

"I'm bankrupt."

"What's insurance?" Christa sprung out of fuckin' nowhere.

"Where did you even learn that word?" I asked in disbelief, letting go of her shoulders as we came out of the dirty neighbourhood.

"On the magic box."

The TV.

"What else did you learn from 'the magic box'?"

"That Titan Burgers has the best burgers. The magic box is _really wise_ , Ymir. You should listen to it." Christa responded in awe while I almost pissed myself laughing. She sounded like she just had an epiphany.

"Don't spout any of this shit while we're at the supermarket, or people are gonna think you're on drugs." I told her, my breathing heavy asI wiped a tear from my eye. She sounded so stoned.

As we neared the supermarket, Christa kept talking about TV and how it'll change many lives and how lucky I am because I have one. I'm gonna take her to a cinema some day soon.

She stopped mid-sentence and came to a complete halt in the middle of the street, before looking around anxiously.

"Christa? What's up?" I questioned as I put a hand on her shoulder. She shook it off, and grabbed my hand as she started to speed up.

"I can sense one. Another Magical Girl. But she's hostile, and I think she can sense me too." She whispered, making a sharp turn at the nearest corner.

I guess I could have expected this, since we were no longer in that shithole of a suburb I lived in and we were now in Stohess City, where crowds are unbelievably dense and travel like schools of fish. But finding another Magical Girl in this crowd would be like trying to find a strand of hay in a stack of needles.

Christa stood around the corner of the building, one hand holding mine tightly and the other in her pocket.

"She's gone." Christa sighed, looking relieved. "Now let's go to the supermarket!"

"Woah, woah, woah. What was that all about?" I pushed as I held my hands in front of me.

"Let's go get burgers! The best ones are at Ti-"

"Christa!" I exclaimed.

"This is more important than burgers. What happened there? How could you sense the other Magical Girl?"

Christa pointed to her forehead.

"It felt a little tingly up here, and then it hurt a little bit. Like this," She began as she lightly pinched me. I yanked my arm back and rubbed the pinched area.

"I knew it was another Magical Girl. I don't know how, but I knew."

I closed my eyes for a second.

"Alright, I believe you. But now we have to go shopping or we'll starve this week. God knows you eat food like your stomach is a void. And I have a nightshift at four." I announced half-heartedly, thinking about what possibly could have been two little Magical Girls fighting.

That would be troublesome, but also possibly adorable.

~\/~

"Can we get these?"

"Christa, for the last time, _no_."

"What about these?"

"You really want a jar of pickles?"

"What's wrong with pickles?"

"Pickles are disgusting."

She put the jar back with a huff and sat back on the front of the trolley, crossing her arms.

The local supermarket was a lonely, one-storey building that sat in between a fourteen-storey law firm and a two-storey mall. It had a flashy, over-the-top exterior, displaying bargains and low prices.

The inside of the supermarket was a whole other bouquet of flowers.

The faded mustard coloured walls and blue linoleum tiles made you feel tired. The speakers, barely working anymore, blasted pop music. From 2002. There were 18 long, boring aisles and always a store attendant scooping yoghurt out of a tub at the end of the dairy fridge.

I always vowed to myself that I would never stoop low enough to have to apply here.

"What about-"

"You are not getting a jar of jalapeños, Christa." I disciplined, picking up four '2-minute noodle' cups of the Oriental flavour. Because Oriental is the best flavour and chicken tastes like shit, and if you like chicken flavoured noodles, then-

"What can I get, then?" She sighed, her tone of voice disappointed.

"You can get one candy bar. One." I allowed, turning the shopping trolley into the next aisle.

"What does a candy bar look like?" She asked forlornly.

"We passed the candy aisle 7 aisles ago. You'll just have to have checkout candy."

"Can we get one of those?" Christa asked, pointing at a cooked bag of chicken. I guess they have these in the middle of the aisles now.

"Yeah, grab two. That's lunch."

She snatched them from her high-up position and slam dunked them into the cart.

"What are they called?" She inquired.

"Reiner when we won't fix my fucking light." I said bitterly under my breath.

After a half-hour later (Mostly spent trying to get Christa to make up her mind on which checkout candy to get), I tried to hail a taxi, but they kept driving off.

"Ymir?"

I turned to the familiar voice, seeing one of my neighbours, shopping bags in hand, car keys in the other.

"Do you want a lift? I know you don't have, a car so-"

"Yes, Bertoldt, thank you. You're a true saint. A very nice man. Christa, thank the nice man." I responded narcissistically, picking up our groceries off the floor.

"Thank you!" She thanked as she clutched the two hot chickens to her chest.

~\/~

The car ride was so very, very awkward. Especially the part when an audio recording of Reiner, Bertoldt and Annie singing 'Total Eclipse of the Heart' came on.

"Is this karaoke?" I questioned, intrigued, as I opened Christa's bag of chocolate freckles, took three and handed her the rest.

"Yeah! Yeah. We do... uh... karaoke night... sometimes." He replied, obviously becoming well aware that he was a victim of embarrassment.

"Nice, nice. So, uh, what's that weird smell in your apartment? It's sickly sweet and has a vapour. Just wondering."

"Annie cooks sometimes."

"Like... passionfruit slice?"

"Drugs."

"Oh." I responded as he turned into the underground carpark. Bertoldt parked the car and got out slowly, trying not to hit his head on the roof. I laughed.

"Don't tell anyone, please." He requested, getting his stuff out of the back seat. Christa was asleep.

"Nah, I won't. Sasha and I smoked weed in high school a couple times, so I get the secrecy thing."

I carried my own grocery bags as I woke up Christa by banging on the window. She had fallen asleep with her mouth wide open and her head against the window, bag of half-eaten freckles in hand.

"Thanks for the ride, by the way. I didn't want to make her ride the bus." I confessed, opening the door as she fell out onto the ground.

"Hmm? Oh, her. She a relative?"

"Nah, she actually dropped out of the sky. Landed on my fire-escape." I told him with a chuckle as Christa came to.

She sleepily stood, grabbing her bag of chocolate freckles and closing the door. She grabbed my hand as I pulled out my phone.

"The sky...?" He asked, concerned. He muttered something inaudibly.

"Yeah. Pretty weird, actually." I agreed, leading her over to the sliding doors.

As we entered, Bertoldt's car sputtered, and zoomed out of the carpark. He was driving it, of course.

Suspicious, alright.

I checked the time on my flip phone and at the same time wished I could have a nice phone. But I can't. Because I'm poor.

3:26.

"I'm gonna have to cancel work." I sighed, dragging Christa to the stairwell.

~\/~

" _Fired_?! Listen, Shadis, I literally lost my cafe job two days ago. You can't do this to me." I begged, balancing my phone between my jaw and my shoulder as I draped a blanket over the sleeping Christa.

"Ymir, you've had 7 sick days this month. That's far too many, considering how many you take off at the start of the year. We're letting you go."

"Wait, Shadis-!"

He hung up.

I took a seat on one of my dining chairs and slid my phone along the table before putting my head in my hands.

"2 jobs gone in two days. Fuck, I'm not even going to make it to _rent_." I murmured, closing my eyes.

I looked at Christa, sleeping soundly on the couch, mouth wide open.

She's gonna attract some bugs if she keeps sleeping like that.

But she did look peaceful.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi here i am again. this chapter was kinda boring except for the cockroach orgy part. whoops lol. anyway, dont expect a new chapter anytime soon bc wattpad deleted the fourth one that i had written so far and im pissed!!!!!
> 
> OH, before i forget - the story's also up on wattpad!!! wattpad is where the chapters will be published first before being transferred over here. its under the same account name and story title. 
> 
> thank u for having an interest in this magical dork n her dork human gf. and also for reading my story c:


	4. Chapter Four

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> connie is an awful internet boyfriend, ymir is salty about being fired and christa meets another magical teeny bopper

_The incessant sound of hooves hitting the ground made itself known as we raced through the forest._

_"Hold my hand!" I shouted, extending my arm out to her. She reached as far as she could, scratching at my bare palm, but yanked her own hand back as a tree came between our horses._

_The whole idea was exciting; being chased on horseback by officials to be executed for our 'crimes'._

_We were going to run away together. A world without her was a world I didn't want to be apart of._

_The fanfare soon approached us, the royal guards closing in on every side. I knew this forest like the back of my hand, however. An advantage that the enemy didn't have._

_She mouthed something at me, probably my name, and moved further away. What was this girl doing?!_

_I turned my horse around, reluctant_ _as the creature was, and followed her as she went a different route._

_We came to a cliff edge, and waited a minute for anyone to come. When no one did, she dismounted her horse._

_It was here that a hidden assailant revealed himself, taking a hold of her arm and pulling her into a hold, knife to her throat. He warned me not to move or else he would kill her. I obeyed._

_He walked slowly to the cliff edge, where he let her go briefly, before muttering something. He pushed her._

_But she did not fall._

_Instead, she grew beautiful wings, but not as beautiful as her, that stretched out further than her arms,_ _as she soared away from the danger. It was glorious._

_He pulled me off my horse, and at that point seemed not to have known that the beautiful angel flew around almost mockingly, as if to spite him._

_He dragged me to the edge of the cliff, in the same position he had the angel, and whispered in my ear something that was so soft, I couldn't hear it._

_He pushed me._

_I expected to grow wings, and fly like the amazing girl I had been in the company of only shortly before, but I didn't._

_Instead, I fell._

_I fell until I hit the bottom of the great cliff._

~\/~

"Ymir! Ymir, the food is burning! Save the food!"

Two small hands roughly shook my shoulders as I woke up. I couldn't remember what that dream was about, but it was awful.

"What?" I muttered sleepily and pissily.

"The food is burning!"

My eyes shot open as I saw Christa standing worriedly at the entrance to the kitchen, hands up to her mouth as she called my name in a frightened tone.

I looked to the kitchen, and sure enough, the fuckin' pasta was on fire. I don't know how, but it was.

I stood quickly, grabbing the handle of the pot and moving it into the sink as I let the tap water run over the sides. It extinguished the fire as Christa sobbed, _'I don't want the food to die! Please save the food!'._

"Pass me the pasta sauce. On the benchtop." I commanded, reaching my hand out for it. Christa handed me the jar, wiping her nose on her hand. This weird cinnamon-looking stuff came out, but I didn't wanna deal any weird magical girl shit right now. I just wanted to get back to sleep.

"Why didn't you tell me that it was on fire?" I asked calmly, brushing my knotty fringe out of my face. I know this isn't usually something you'd include in a fanfic like this, but I hadn't actually brushed my hair in a while. These past couple of days have been very stressful.

"What's wrong?" Christa asked as my phone began to ring. I must have had a thoughtful look on my face.

"I'm just breaking the fourth wall in my head." I responded, tipping the warm pasta sauce into the saucepan as I grabbed my phone.

"Hello?"

"He cancelled on me. Again. He cancelled and now my plans are ruin-"

" _Sasha_ ," I groaned, stirring the pasta mix.

Christa looked at me expectantly. I shrugged, but I don't think that was the answer she wanted.

 _Puppies_? She mouthed.

 _No_ , I mouthed back.

"No, Ymir. Don't groan. I am in a _serious relationship_ with Connie and he acts like it's a huge hassle to drive an hour to come and see me. He actually _complained_."

"Wow, I can't imagine that your internet relationship is falling apart. But I guess that's the way the cookie crumbles." I replied sarcastically, getting two plastic bowls and setting them on the bench.

"Cookies?" Christa piped up, eyes gleaming something bright.

"I'm coming over." Sasha told me after about a minute of silence. Actually, that was a gross exaggeration; it was more like 3 seconds. Hyperbole at it's best.

"No, you're not."

"Yes, I am. I'm already in the car."

I sighed as I spooned some pasta into a bowl and gave it to Christa.

"I'm not letting you in." I warned, sticking forks in Christa's bowl and my own.

"You gave me a spare key."

"A dreadful mistake."

~\/~

"Pass me another chocolate, Christa." Sasha asked, blowing her nose with another tissue.

"You're not her slave, Christa, she can  _reach_ for the packet herself and get one out."

Christa, however, got Sasha another chocolate and even unwrapped it for her. Unbelievable.

Sasha wolfed the whole thing and deservedly choked on it.

"Whas th' time?" Sasha inquired, talking with her disgusting mouth full. I got a beautiful view of the chocolate and peanut butter stuck between her teeth.

"Time to get a watch." I responded, picking up the two bowls I'd served not long ago.

"The time is 8:24:35, weather is 18° celsius and the moon is a crescent tonight."

I almost fell the fuck over.

"What was that, Christa?" I raised my eyebrows in shock as I turned. What the actual hell?

"That's what the man says."

That's when I noticed the headphones she was wearing. I thought the kid had telephony or ESPN or something. Where did she even get an iPod from?

"18 degrees." Sasha marvelled, staring out of my barred window at the distant city. She had stopped crying and just made little sniffles every now and then.

"And you let Christa walk around in that summer dress." She concluded after a long silence. No exaggeration this time.

"I.. give her a jacket sometimes!" I defended, throwing the plastic multi-coloured bowls at the sink. They missed.

"She's shaking." Sasha told me monotonely, gesturing to Christa.

She was lying on her stomach, colouring in some black and white picture book, missing the lines and listening to whatever was on the iPod. Hopefully not death metal. But she certainly wasn't shaking.

"I'd hardly call that shaking. Is that your iPod?"

"Ymir, it's November. Get the damn girl a blanket or something. Take her back to her house so she can get some damn clothes." Sasha scolded, pointing at the half-asleep girl.

"Ah," I hummed, walking off towards my closet. "I've been meaning to talk to you about that." As I twisted the knob, coloured envelopes came pouring out. All with the same inscription on the front. To: My Daughter.

"About what?" Sasha asked. I could hear her shove another chocolate into her mouth as she asked it. It was repulsive, that girl's eating habits. No wonder her internet boyfriend didn't want to see her.

"Christa." I replied, kicking the letters back in as I pulled out three thin blankets.

There was a pause of silence as I shoved the door shut.

"Is she your new 'special lady friend'?"

"I'm a lesbian, not a grandma. You can just say 'girlfriend'. And no, she's not." I countered, draping a blanket over Christa as she put a pencil down and picked up another one. I tossed another blanket at Sasha's face as she shovelled two more chocolates into her gob.

"What's it like to be a lesbian, Ymir? Is it easier than being straight?" Sasha shifted the conversation topic as she stared at a chocolate.

"Sasha, why don't you go to a coffee shop? Or a concert? Or a nightclub, instead of putting your pathetic ass out on the internet and on dating websites. Are you still telling people about your 'modelling career'?"

"It happened, ok?!" She replied, sucking on the chocolate. It was clearly outlined on the side of her cheek.

"It was one McDonald's ad. You were in it for a split second."

Sasha sighed dramatically.

"And what about you, Ymir? Why don't you go out and get a girlfriend or something." She stopped and stared at the floor.

"Maybe I'm not straight." Shifting the subject again, I see.

"Maybe you're just a pain in my ass." It's best that I let her know now.

"You can dump Connie for me!" Sasha blurted, eyes wide like she just ha a goddamn epiphany.

"Go home, Sasha."

"If you do, I'll cancel all your shifts for the next three days and you'll still get pay." She taunted in a sing-song voice, holding out her phone to me, Connie's number already dialed.

"I'm not on till next Wednesday, Sasha." But she ignored me.

"Just like ripping off a bandaid, Ymir. Do it fast." Sasha egged me on as I pushed 'Call'.

It rang out for a couple of seconds, and then there was a tired voice.

"Sasha hates your ass and wants to dump you." I told him, about to hang up when I realised how cowardly that was.

"Excuse me?"

"Sasha thinks you're boring. She wanted me to dump you while she's in the toilets with a Ryan Gosling lookalike. Oh, man, they were getting it on tonight." I lied, watching Sasha give me the cut-throat gesture.

"They were almost making love on the table before I stopped them."

"Who is this?" He asked, a yawn following his question.

"Sasha's friend Anna. This is Connie, right?"

"Connie? My name's Jean...?"

I quickly hung up the phone, tossing it back to Sasha as she laughed.

"Who is Jean?" I demanded furiously as Sasha cackled evilly like the witch she was.

"He lives downstairs. Room 6, bottom floor. I got his number on the way up." She told me after settling down. I'd have to go and apologise tomorrow. Fucking typical.

"You need more friends, Ymir. Me and Hanji who works at Titan Burgers aren't gonna be around forever. Just introduce yourself and go with the flow." She advised, standing up and folding the blanket.

"Where are you going?"

"Home. Mikasa wanted to talk to me about a job opening at that craft place she works at."

"You're selling the pet shop?! Fuck, Sasha, that's my only source of income anymore!" I yelled exasperatedly. She couldn't shut it down?!

"You have your other job. The one at that bar down the road. Starts with 'Q'?"

"They never put me on anymore." I muttered, shaking Christa to wake her up. Sasha jingled her car keys.

"Besides, the opening's not for me. It's for you. After you lost your job at that weird cafe place, I figured I'd help you out. Seeya on Sunday. 8 o'clock."

"You said NEXT WEDNESDAY!" I shouted as she left through the door.

"Better go apologise to that guy today, I guess." I spoke, to no one in particular, when Christa grabbed my arm.

"Where are we going?" She yawned, looking up at me.

"You're not coming."

Of course, she didn't listen. No one listens to Wise Ymir of the Mountain.

We took the staircase down, mostly because I saw some kids jamming the elevator and I didn't feel like falling to my inevitable death tonight.

When we got to the bottom level, I located the sixth room. Man, it was cleaner down here than it was on the third floor. I guess that's saying something.

I put my hand on the clean, white wood of the door and rapped my knuckles against it three times. When no one answered, Christa knocked on the door rhythmically, in the way a child would.

The door swung open. I got a glimpse of the man's face before Christa cowered behind me, grabbing my arm again but tighter.

"No, it's ok. I won't hurt you." The man said.

"Well, thanks, but-" I stopped when I saw him talking to Christa.

"I'm just like you. I won't hurt you. Does she know?" He questioned soothingly as Christa nodded slowly.

"'Just like you'? What the hell does that mean?"

Another one. I almost fell the fuck over. I guess this was what Christa meant when she said 'I've already seen 2'. I honestly thought she'd meant on the street, not in our own building, but here we were. Another one.

"I'm a Magical Boy."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi lol it me. i published this a long time ago and promised some ppl it would be up on here ,like, 3 weeks ago. im a huge procrastinator.
> 
> finally this story is GETTIN SOMEWHERE. i like the idea of magical boys.
> 
> i hope you enjoyed this chapter!! dont forget to leave a kudos (maybe a comment if youre feelin generous...??)


	5. Chapter Five

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> marco is a magical boy and jean is really salty ft ymir and christa

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi!!!!!!!! on this, the 31st of july 2015, i am one year older than i was last year. its my birthday!!!! time 2 celebrate with double chapters (and perhaps, maybe a .5 chapter?)
> 
> thank u for reading my story, even when it seems super rushed or boring. im still a fanfic writer learnin the tricks of the trade, so thank you all so much for sticking with me through that. without further ado, chapter 5!!!

_The sails soared and the wind helped to carry them, whipping my hair around. The ocean was everywhere, and calm and beautiful._

_It was a more pleasant experience with her there, swimming alongside the boat, flipping her tail against its wooden base every now and then to reassure me that she was still there._

_I had been considering bringing her along to a voodoo witch so we could further continue our adventures, with four legs instead of two and a half._

_The clouds suddenly darkened, and the haughty roaring of other pirates approaching my one-woman ship was despicably loud._

_I hauled her up; a mermaid brought in a vast income for any pirate skilled enough to catch one, and I wouldn't give her up so selfishly to a band of novices._

_I carried her down to the dropped rowboat below deck (An area built in by a dear friend, with the floor opened up for one of those new submarine contraptions; one of which I'd never come into possession of.), already full of water for such an emergency, and placed her gently inside. The mermaid lingered on the leaving touch, wishing me something of a 'farewell'._

_'But tis' not farewell forever; just temporary goodbye.'_

_And with my words, I left her._

_Upon entering the deck, the pirates had begun climbing onto my glorious ship, pillaging and plundering as they might. They knocked over barrels and supply crates, set fires to my sails and stabbed through my floorboards, causing damage anywhere they could._

_I knew what they were seeking, and even with a sword in my side, I did not yield. I would never tell them where my love was bestowed._

_I blinked fast; a helping hand was held out to me. A trick, perhaps. I heard a high-pitched scream, and decided that helping or not, I was to take the hand._

_The pirate who lent his hand flung me across the deck, shouting victory shrills as he thrusted his sword into another's backside._

_Taking it as a spin of good luck, I grabbed a musket that was lying on the oaken floorboards and opened the hatch that led to the open area._

_Upon entering, a disgusting smell wafted in the air. I floated down the steps and saw the bottom deck of the boat filling with ocean water, and a built pirate yanking at the mermaid's arms with all his might as she held onto the side of her rowboat, a terrified look on her face._

_I clicked back the musket and aimed towards the pirate's back. Upon firing, a cloudy haze fell upon my surroundings. It concealed everything, and when it faded, the pirate's body lay half in the water, and the mermaid was nowhere to be seen._

~\/~

"Tea?"

I just sat, dumbfounded. These two magical whatevers had only just met and were acting like they hadn't seen each other for years. It was unbelievable.

"I'm Marco, by the way." The man introduced, holding the teapot out to me, a gesture saying _'Want some?'._

I shook my head and leaned back into the sofa, one arm on the armrest and the other behind Christa. It was a not-too-shabby apartment for an exceptionally shabby building. The walls were actually painted rather than plastered with tacky wallpaper, and the floor was not deteriorating floorboards, but carpet. Expensive carpet. Detailed oiled paintings and photo-frames of Marco and some other guy littered the walls.

I had yet to meet the mysterious Jean who Sasha will probably be dating in 6 months, if Connie can't pick up his date game. Not that he really deserved Sasha anyway. She might be a total airhead but she deserves better than some sleazy internet bald-fuck who's already going grey.

Actually, come to think of it, I think Jean might not play on the same team as Sasha, based on these pictures. I could tell he was the two-tone haired fuckboy in the photos.

"How long?" Marco asked, handing a pretty teacup to Christa and pouring some sickly sweet-smelling tea into it. She looked to me, eyes expectant for an answer. They must've meant how long she's been here.

"Like, four days."

Very anticlimactic. Good job, Ymir.

" _Ah_ ,"Marco _ah-ed._ "I've been here for 6 years, give or take."

He and Christa continued to converse while sipping tea.

I didn't really want to be here when I could be sleeping, at home, after a couple drinks or so. Which reminded me to lock up the alcohol in case Christa stumbles upon it. I don't know how Magical Girls and alcohol mix, but I didn't want to find out.

"How do Magical Girls and alcohol mix?" I interrupted, talking to no one in particular, now craving the tea that Christa slurped slowly. Marco looked down as if he were having a war flashback.

"Would you give alcohol to a baby?" He retaliated, pouring more tea into tea cups. He just had, like, seven tea cups that he was filling up. Why? Did he have some kind of weird thing for teacups?

"Probably. I'm very irresponsible." I replied sarcastically, taking the tea cup he'd just held out to me. Get what you ask for, I guess.

"Christa is like a baby. No offence, Christa."

"What's a ' _baby_ '?" Christa spoke up for the first time after taking a large slurp of her tea. It sounded kinda like when you slurp ramen noodles. Which was when I realised that somehow Christa had gotten ahold of ramen noodles. And was slurping them.

"It's when _Reiner won't fix my fucking light_. That's what it is." I told her, voice monotone. I might be leading her way off track with the same definition for everything, but at least it's funny.

Marco gave a disapproving shake of his head at my use of language.

"Marco, babe, I'm ho-" A man with a nice jawline and two-toned hair (Really, nice jawline guy? Not that I care. I don't even like guys, but I know a hot guy when I see one. He was fine before I saw that half-bleached mess of a hairstyle.) stepped through the door way, immediately grimacing at the sight of Christa and I sitting on his sofa.

It must be Jean.

"Who's tall-dark-and-handsome and lolita freak?" He asked, setting an eco-friendly coffee he was holding onto a beech long table against the wall. Marco gave a disapproving look. Again.

"Jean, this is Ymir and Christa. They live on the third floor. Christa's a magical girl. Just like-"

"Well, I'll be damned. Three in one building!" Jean said in fake awe, throwing his hands up to his face. I was getting the vibe that he was a huge, hipster douche.

"I'm used to it. I couldn't give two shits if you were magical or not. I've had so many run-ins with your kind that it's not even shocking anymore." He aimed at Christa, his shitty fucking mood clear across his face.

I sat as I processed his words. Unfortunately, the term 'In one ear, out the other' resonated deeply here.

"I want to go home." I said, grabbing Christa's hand. It was, like, 11 PM. 11 PM is usually _Ymir time_. And if Ymir doesn't _have Ymir time_ , she gets _very_ upset.

"Leavin' so soon, Freckles?" Jean asked, guffawing. "Did I make it too awkward for you? Do I make you uncomfortable?"

"A lot, actually. Thanks for asking!"

He gestured to the door dramatically, both arms enthusiastically pointed towards it.

"Y'know, I don't blame you for being pissy." I confessed.

"Mmm?" Jean hummed as I let Christa walk in front of me.

"Yeah, if I did a shitty job on my DIY bleach ombre, I'd be pissy too." Some corner in the back of my mind started applauding my _WICKED BURN._

"Get out of my apartment. Now."

Marco quickly said goodbye as Jean slammed the door behind us. Talk about fucking rude.

"I'm a little sad that we didn't get to talk more." Christa lamented, still holding firmly onto her teacup of ramen noodles.

"Christa, there are going to be people in life who walk all over you. Jeanny boy is a fine example." I explained as she looked to me expectantly.

"I won't let him walk all over me and you shouldn't let him walk all over you."

Christa nodded tiredly.

I began the three-storey trudge up the stairs, Christa somehow managing to jump on my back piggy-back style. She wasn't exactly light for someone of her size, either. It was like carrying a full-grown adult.

She was asleep by the time we got to my apartment, teacup still in hand. She refused to let go of it.

"Y'know, I think we should do something fun tomorrow. Like go to a carnival or something."

She didn't even stir at my words. She reminded me of a sloth. If sloths wore weird lolita dresses and ate way more than they should.

Whatever.


	6. Chapter Six

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> *the once-ler voice* finally the romance is PROGRESSING

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hi again, it me bday so heres part 2 of ur double update!! i did write this in a day and a half so it is really rushed. i apologise for that. 
> 
> also, some shameless self promotion!
> 
> my twitter is @sailorjupimeme and my tumblr is reiner-bertoldt-annie
> 
> thank youuuuu for readingggg!!!!!

_The dragon's screech was incredibly loud as it roared over the castle. It's fire enflamed everything, engulfing the tower in a flickering red and orange glow. The ruined courtyard was stained red from the fallen knights, concealing everything from the moss to the cracks in the stones._

_It had only one target now, a small knight on a small horse riding courageously through the bloodied and ruined courtyard, sword raised high as he shouted 'Excelsior!'s and 'For Freedom!'s._

_The dragon perched on top of a tower nearby, huffing in as much air as it could, readying itself for the knight's 'attack'._

_The knight's horse stopped abruptly, throwing them off. His helmet flew off, revealing a feminine face and long blonde hair._

_The knight was a woman._

_And yet, she seemed the most brave. She pushed herself up and charged towards the menacing creature, voice raising from a small groan to a scream as it flew towards her. She did not waver; she kept running._

_I chose not to look through the stone and mortar window any longer, so as not to see the beautiful woman succumb to her inevitable death. I heard a large crash and sounds of strife, and in my haste, turned around._

_The dragon was lying dead as a doornail on top of the bloodstained stones, and the knight stood atop it, a sword plunged through it's skull._

_She waved towards the window with a victorious smile, unaware of the dragon's mother flying in behind her._

~\/~

The thunder was deafening. I could hear the rain as it smashed against my frail window frames, and I could feel two tiny hands shaking me.

"Ymir?"

"Mmwh?" (I was exceptionally coherent in answering her.) You'd think she'd at least _try_ to whisper.

"Can I sleep in here? I don't like th-" Christa was cut off by a crackle of lightning, and she screamed after it had silenced.

"Idncare." I continued.

She got in next to me as thunder rolled loudly, making her jumpy as she crawled over me.

"Carefl."

"Sorry." She apologised, quickly pushing the blankets back and pulling them up again. Christa scooted closer to me so our backs were touching.

The rain eased for a second.

"Ymir?"

"What." It was more of a statement than a question.

"I'm hungry."

I sat up lazily, opening my eyes to squint. I pushed a button on the lamp next to me, and it flickered wildly. Odd.

Reaching into my bedside table drawer, I pulled out a packet of mini Wagon Wheels and handed them to her.

"Thank you."

I tried to check the time on my radio clock, but the light in it was flickering wildly too. However, it was about 3:20 AM.

Christa dusted off the Wagon Wheels before I even turned around.

"Y-"

"No." I told her, staring through the window at the rain.

"But it's cold..."

I looked over at her. If she wanted to cuddle or something...

I put my arm around her and she moved closer inwards, pulling the blanket with her. Thank God she wasn't wearing that stupid dress.

A-And by that, I mean she's wearing pyjamas. She's not naked or anything...

"Ymir?"

I didn't even bother answering this time.

"I want to talk to Marco again."

"Go to _sleep,_ Christa."

Really, you'd think with how she instantly falls asleep in literally any circumstance where she has to do physical activity, she'd be able to do it in an actual bed. Suspicious. She's walking up stairs by herself from now on.

"Shh."

I don't even let the quotation marks come in as I shush her. I lay down again, dragging Christa down with me as another roaring thunder strikes. Christa put her arms around me and squeezed tight.

_"Is she your new 'special lady friend'?"_

Sasha's voice rang out in my head, and I immediately envisioned my mind-hand rubbing her face out with a whiteboard eraser.

Christa's cute and all, but.... she's not like me. She's too innocent for her own good. She doesn't even know what a baby is, for crying out loud! She's also mentally five.

Also, she's, like, a Magical Girl. Is she even human? Is that sort of thing even legal?

Mind-hand comes back in with the whiteboard eraser.

The rain poured down even heavier than before, and my lamp flickered so much that it just shut off.

As I settled down, I thought about Christa's arms around me. Which I probably shouldn't. I could feel my face heat up everytime she stirred a little. She was already dead asleep. I sort of awkwardly put my arms around her, too. It felt weird, like I was holding some grown baby. I eased up my muscles a little bit as I closed my eyes and tried to go back to sleep.

~\/~

"What do you think of this coat?" I asked, holding one up to her to see if it would fit.

She scrunched up her face.

"I don't like it."

"Christa, you've said that about everything I've shown you in the past half hour. You can't wear your magic clothes in the winter or you'll freeze. So help me pick out a nice coat for you or we _will_ go home." I warned sternly. I felt like a mom dealing with a toddler.

Christa gave a disgusted look.

"But I don't like any of these." She grumbled.

"Excuse me?"

Christa looked me in the eyes for a split second before crossing her arms and turning around.

Is she having a tantrum? Holy _shit._ She's having a tantrum.

"Christa."

She half-turned but kept looking at the ground.

 _"Christa."_ I repeated, pulling out a light pink jacket. The fleece inside would probably keep her warm.

"Do you like this one?" I questioned, pulling out a dark purple one and holding it up for her to see.

 _"No."_ She protested, eyebrows furrowing something chronic.

"I'm buying them for you anyway. Grow up while I'm at the checkout, please."

She followed behind me, stomping slightly. I whipped around and pointed a finger at her.

"We will go _home_ and you won't see Marco or get a hot chocolate."

Christa unfolded her arms and looked like she was about to blow a fuse. _Oh well. If she's going to be such a baby about it, that's her decision. I'm not going to let her freeze to death under MY supervision._

After we left the department store, I told Christa to pick one and put it on. She reluctantly chose the purple one and put it on _real slowly._

"Christa, I swear to _God,"_

I grabbed her hand and led her to the cafe at the other end of the mall, weaving through many people, some of which stopped to ask Christa _'What anime are you from? I love your cosplay.'_ and _'Wow, you look familiar. What character are you supposed to be? Some lolita AU Usagi Tsukino?'._ Again. Who knew there were so many weeaboos in Trost?

I sat with Christa on a bench outside of a coffee shop, waiting for Marco to text me. Since he was all she would talk about all morning, I went and saw him and thankfully Jean wasn't there. Marco said he'd meet me at some coffee shop at the mall complex.

My phone beeped as I made a match in Candy Crush. Great fuckin' timing.

_Marco (Magic boy): I'm at Dot Coffeehouse._   
_Me: kk_

I led Christa through the crowd once again. He was on the other side of the _fuckin' mall._

Once we got there, he was already seated with a cappucino. The scent of ginger lingered wildly, and come to think of it, it smelt like that a lot at his apartment, too.

"Howdy." I greeted, pulling out a chair for Christa and then one for myself.

"Hi." Marco smiled back, possible dimples showing. "I told the waiter to stick around, since you'd be coming soon. I know it's a little expensive here, but everything's on me. "

He was adorable. Not in an attractive way, but the way you see a cute puppy or cat and go _'Aww!'._ Like Christa adorable.

"I can't let you do that." I admitted guility, reaching into my purse to get out some dollar notes.

"No, Ymir. I swear it's fine." He assured  me, putting a hand over mine for a few seconds. "So what is it that you two want to talk about?"

"I think Christa just wants to know more." I answered, elbowing the girl next to me, who was frothing at the mouth at all the sweet desserts and pastries in the window. Marco chuckled a little.

"She's got a sweet tooth." He mused.

"More like she'll eat anything you put in front of her." I mumbled, tugging on the back of her coat to get her attention.

"Hmm?" She hummed as she spun around.

"You wanted to talk to Marco. Now talk." I said, swinging back on my chair a bit.

~\/~

"...so I guess that experience depends on every Magical person. No two Magical people share the exact same... well, anything." Marco explained, taking the last sip of his seventh cappucino. Five plates of what were once cheesecakes and Danish pastries littered the table. I felt guilty for making Marco pay for all of it.

But also not guilty, 'cause these magical fucks had almost bought out the _damn shop._

I checked my phone as they kept rambling. 4:35 PM, with a text from the bar I worked at.

"Christa."

She turned to me, chewing on some weird pastry. The flakes were all over her.

"I gotta go soon. I've got work tonight."

Marco beamed as he signaled for a waiter to come over. The waiter looked to be no older than 20 and had a shit-ton of piercings and coloured hair. She sneered at the sight of the mess.

"That's $104.75, _sir."_

Marco gladly handed over the money, tucking his chair in as he stood up.

"Do you guys want me to walk you home? I don't exactly have a licence."

Christa enthusiastically nodded like crazy, swallowing what was in her mouth.

~\/~

"What time are you coming back? And why do you need me to babysit Christa? She's, like, _20."_ Sasha whined, opening a foil bag of chips. It rustled as she put her hand in and pulled out a handful of chips. They were salt and vinegar, and I could smell them from a metre away.

"Can you just look after her for me? Just feed her and then put her to bed. She does it all herself anyway so you can't mess up." I told her, grabbing my bag.

There is no way she can possibly mess this up.


	7. Chapter 6.5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Sasha discovers just how weird Christa is. And Sasha is as oblivious as ever.

I couldn't believe my Goddamn eyes. It was raining these weird crystal flower thingies in Ymir's apartment. 

I made some noises in shock, feeling my phone vibrate in my back pocket. I reached back to silence it, accidentally dropping it in the process.

Christa smiled gently as they disintegrated on the floor. I put my hand out to touch one, palm up. 

"These... are so pretty..." I marvelled as a light purple one started to disintegrate in my palm. I fumbled for my phone to take a photo to send to Ymir, but it was done disintegrating before I could even open the camera.

"Thank you, Sasha." Christa beamed, sweeping up the disintegrated powder-like stuff with her hand and eating it.

"Christa, I hate to, uh, burst your bubble, but the floor is littered with germs and, uh... You're eating that?" I asked, and she nodded and held some out to me. I took it (I'm always up for new cuisine experiences) and lightly put my tongue on the powder.

"Holy shit, this is DELICIOUS." I mused, tilting my head back and letting the powder fall from my hand into my mouth. If I could live off stuff like this, believe me, I would.

"Better call Ymir. She'd be-"

"Wait!" Christa held out a hand. 

"Don't tell her. I wanna surprise her." 

I checked my watch, and my eyes widened in shock. God-fucking-damnit, it was 1:18 AM. Christa was supposed to be in bed three hours and eighteen minutes ago! As I looked around the room, food and plates and board games and movies and blankets scattered everywhere, I wondered just how we had lost track of time.

"Well, seeing as though you're supposed to be in bed-"

"But-!" Christa began. She made me feel like a bad babysitter. Not that I was babysitting her, but after spending some time with her, I could see how Ymir could consider me that. For a young adult, she sure was weird. And magical, apparently! Ymir never told me that Christa could do party tricks!

"Can we please watch the mermaid movie again?" Christa pouted, some of the pastel-coloured flower dust left behind around the corners of her mouth and the palms of her hands. 

"But I'm out of rainbow popcorn. We'd have to switch to regular popcorn, and I just can't do that during a princess movie." 

"We don't need to have the rainbow popcorn!" Christa almost yelled. I sure was surprised; she had been so well-behaved all night, and suddenly she was snapping. And over what?!

"No, Christa. Ymir's gonna be home real soon, and if I don't put you to bed, she's gonna get really angry with me and we won't be able to hang out like this anymore. I've had a really fun night and I'm sure you have too, but we need to take responsibility right now and do the right thing." 

OH MY GOD. I SOUND LIKE A MOM AT A SLEEPOVER PARTY. 

Christa made a whining noise as she hunched over, baby blue eyes downcast. She lifted a hand to her neck (???) and touched something. The whole room was swallowed in a pink-purple haze.

OH MY FUCKING GOD. WE'RE TRIPPING. OH MY GOD. CHRISTA'S GOT DRUGS. DOES YMIR KNOW? OH MY GOD. I BET SHE DOESN'T. CHRISTA IS A DRUG-DEALER. SHE SLIPPED DRUGS INTO THAT POWDER. THAT'S WHY SHE WANTED ME TO TASTE IT SO BAD. HOLY SHIT. I AM FREAKING OUT. OH MY GOD. I'LL NEVER BE ABLE TO GET INTO COLLEGE. I'M GONNA BECOME A JUNKIE AND I'LL LOSE THE PET STORE. I'LL LOSE MY HOUSE. I'LL LOSE MY FAMILY. I'M GONNA BE 22 AND IN REHAB. GOD, IF YOU CAN HEAR ME NOW-

And just like that, it was over as quickly as it had begun. I looked at Christa for an explanation, but she just stared blankly back. 

"What... what...?"

"I'm a magical girl...?" She retaliated, as if I should know the answer.

"So we weren't tripping?" I questioned cautiously, noticing how she was now in a nightgown and had her hair out of it's usual ponytail. In fact, her whole big and puffy outfit was, well, gone.

"What's 'tripping'?"

"Geez, you're really somethin', kid." I told her a little nervously, moving to sit on the couch. A cockroach slid out from under my cushion. Gross.

"I guess you should go to bed, now."

~\/~

It was 2:30 AM when the door to Ymir's apartment opened mysteriously, and when I heard a thud and a 'Fuck, the wall!', I knew Ymir was home. 

"You're home." I greeted tiredly, one arm slung over the side of the sofa and another holding the blanket over myself. I didn't need to open my eyes to know that she was probably standing over me with her hands on her hips.

"Where's Christa?" She asked, flicking my head. For what reason, I have no idea.

"She insisted on sleeping in your bed. Hey, do you know about this 'magical girl' thing?" 

I opened one eye when she didn't answer, and saw a concerned look on Ymir's face.

"Oh my God, what has she done."

"Numerous things, which I will go into detail about at a later date when I am not half-asleep and starving."

I sat up slowly as Ymir put some shopping bags on her dining table, the old wood creaking as she did so.

"Did she go to sleep early?" 

"Hmm? Oh, no. She almost threw a fit when I told her it was time to go to bed."

"Yeah," Ymir sighed, a hand over her eyes. "She does that now. She's almost like a child."

"Well, you're free to stay the rest of the night, if you want." Ymir offered kindly (A rare occurrence). Overworked and sleepy Ymir was the best Ymir. 

She turned off the lights that I had left on and took her bar apron off, hanging it on a chair. 

"Rough night?" 

"I kicked a girl in the shins for disrespecting me." She yawned, muttering a 'goodnight' as she slowly pulled the door to her bedroom ajar. She whispered something to Christa, no doubt, before closing the door.

Tonight had been a weird night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AAAAAAAAAAA!!! It's been so long since I've posted!! I found this sitting in my wattpad drafts and decided to finish it off. I did do this in the space of about 40 minutes before I went to sleep, but I hope it's enough to sate all of your magical girl appetites for a small while. In the meantime, I'm working on chapter 7!! I'll try and get it done before Halloween. 
> 
> Thank you all for reading!! It really means so much to me, especially when the chapters take me so long to conjure up. I know it's slow-going but thank you all so much for having patience and not giving up on this fic. Believe me, I'm intending to take it a LOOOOOOONG way.
> 
> \- Lauren ☆


	8. Chapter Seven

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> WOOHOO!! EVERYONE IS A HALLOWEENIE IN THIS CHAPTER

_There was something oddly calming about the maize field, something that let the goosebumps settle and let the hairs on the end of my neck stick back down. Perhaps it was the unusual scent of pumpkin; a scent that I now realise was all too close to be considered 'Unusual'._

_I tilted my head up as I took in a whiff of the air around me, as if it would help significantly to some degree, something in my mind telling me to follow the smell. Who knew - out in the old maize fields, anything was possible. There may even be some gold involved._

_I brushed the strangely-too-heavy stalks out of my path and I trampled through the mud and fallen plants, the scent I had latched onto only moments before intensifying greatly with every step. I was getting close._

_Suddenly, my heart started to pound wildly in my chest. There was a newfound sense of danger instilled in me, and as my shaking hand lifted itself up to the next stalk, I knew that it would reveal the origin of the pumpkin-smell._

But now I was nervous. Who knew what lie beyond the corn stalks in front of me? Perhaps it is not gold; perhaps it is a ravenous serial killer, or Death and his fear-striking scythe. Or perhaps it is the beautiful girl from the bakery, baking her wonderful pumpkin bread for everyone in the small town to share.

_Swallowing my fear and pushing the stalks apart and I squeezed my eyes shut, upon opening them I was met with a very grizzly scene._

_The blonde girl from the bakery was sat on a pumpkin, carving something with a pocket knife. Upon squinting my eyes, I realised it was a smaller pumpkin. All around her her smashed pumpkins and, among them, several dead bodies; the bodies of everyone in town. Except they had no heads._

_There was a large furnace, still burning, just behind her, the door left ajar. The wind blew it perfectly open for me to see, and inside the huge furnace was the heads from the bodies lying on the floor, burning. The one on the far left, a young brunette woman's head, was charring slightly with her eyes wide open and a spoon hanging lazily from her mouth._

_'So, you've finally joined us.' The blonde girl from the bakery said, looking up as she dropped the knife into her lap. She studied the pumpkin in her hands and turned it to face me so I could see the carving._

_The carving was an extremely detailed portrait of my own face. She dropped it then, letting it and its contents splatter over one of the bodies at her feet. The girl seemingly didn't care about the effort and work she had put into carving the intricate details immediately going to waste. She stood, the knife slipping out of her lap as she did so, and started to walk towards me, wiping her bloody hands on her apron as she took hold of an axe lodged into the ground._

_"We've been expecting you, Ymir."_

~\/~

My eyes shot open in fear as I felt something touch my backside. I gulped, turning to find it was Christa, dead asleep and drooling on my arm as she clung onto it with what felt like all her might.

What an awful nightmare.

I pushed her off gently, pushing one of the pillows into her arms in my place. I wiped my brow with the back of my hand, cold sweat coming off it. I then wiped my hand on my pyjama shorts.

I stood quietly, so as not to awaken her, and tiptoed away from the bed and into the ensuite bathroom ('Ensuite' sounded fancy for a bathroom that matched the quality of one you'd find at a 7/11, but tiled and with actual soap.) so I could splash some cold water on my face and take a piss, because hey, lemonade had become a recent favourite of mine, and you can bet your ass I had a lot before bed with Christa.

I had almost trod on what could have been (or, more like what I'm _sure_  was) some mouldy pizza from the _last_ time I'd had pizza - which, considering that I was fired from the pizza joint around ten months ago, was a very long time ago and that that could be the reason for my possible cockroach infestation. Oh, and believe me, those fucking roaches were still probably having orgies in my couch. And judging by the absolutely chaotic mess on the floor, probably hiding in my work pants that been left lying around for God knows how long.

I opened the door a crack, waiting for it to creak, as I kept an eye on Christa. The adorable thing was still sound asleep as I pulled the door towards me and stepped inside, flicking the light switch.

I walked up to the mirror and stared at myself in it.

God, I looked _tired_. Like those moms that you see at the local park, pushing their prams and wearing activewear while they're on the phone to their best friend Sharon, who had just found out about some great playground. Three miles away.

That kind of tired.

My hair stuck to my sweaty forehead, and I had bags under my eyes. There was a cold sore around my mouth, too - who even knew how and when that had gotten there. Even with Christa 'helping out' (Inhaling every particle of food in the kitchen and watching Power Rangers every morning like a school child), my life had practically gone downhill. 

By this point, Christa had been here for about a month. She hadn't really changed much except for learning how to read, and even that was a struggle for her. She'd developed a good bond with Marco, which was beneficial for both of us, since I could have my usual _Ymir Time_  while Christa and Marco drank organic tea and talked about the Shadow Realm or something. Plus, whatever Marco couldn’t explain, I could teach her about. Which wasn’t an awful lot, thank _God._

Sasha had also confronted me about my apparent ‘crush’ on Christa. Which, in the first place, is bullshit, and in the second place is invalid altogether because I’m unsure how the human/Magical person thing works. I am, however, sure there’s a set of cosmic rules written in stardust or something that forbids that, and I’m not exactly tempted to test it.

I suddenly remembered something while looking at myself - hot and dangerous as always - and figured that we still had a fair amount of time to introduce Christa to the well-known Pagan practice of _Halloween_. Sasha had asked me about it today during a shift, and Christa had caught ear of it and made it her personal mission to find out as much about it as she could. But even the _Great Marco_  himself didn't have much info on that, so she'd turned to me and inquired about using the 'Goodgle'. I told her I had no idea what she was talking about, which was semi-true. Just what _was_ the Goodgle, anyway?

 

I’d promised her that I would take her costume shopping tomorrow – or rather, today – and that we could take her trick-or-treating in a couple days when it was time. She almost did flips at the idea of wearing cool outfits and eating as much candy as she could devour at the same time. Unfortunately, she wouldn’t listen when we tried to explain the concept of ‘stomach aches’. But that would be future-Ymir’s problem on Halloween night, so present-Ymir should probably try to sleep easy until then. And probably buy some buckets for the inevitable spew-train that was heading straight for Ymir’s-Apartment Station.

 

I turned the sink tap and listened to it whine before sputtering out some brown water. I let it flow until it ran clear, and then stuck my mouth under it, gulping down as much water as I could. If only I had checked the time before I had left the warm but sweaty comfort of my bed and the sloth sleeping in it.

 

 

I heard something move around in my bedroom then as I sat on the closed lid of the toilet and saw the door pull outwards.

 

“Christa, no, you can’t,” I began tiredly as I wiped at my eyes. She ignored me anyway and came and sat on my lap. If I didn’t like the girl so much, I would’ve told her to get off my lap and go back to sleep. But because I’m a big softie, I just let her sit there as she put her head on my shoulder and started going back to sleep. LIKE A _BABY_.

 

“Christa, again, no, you can’t sit here.”

 

She made some noise that resembled a high-pitched grunt or whine.

 

“But I need to pee.”

 

“Pee tomorrow.”

 

“But I _can’t_ pee tomorrow. What if my bladder explodes in my sleep? And I die? What happens to you then, huh?” I retorted, now slightly annoyed, flicking her forehead. She turned her head away and frowned as she dug her head into my exposed shoulder, making sure to really push against me so that I physically moved. I was getting pretty sick of it now.

 

“We won’t go costume shopping if you keep this up.”

 

She pulled away to look at me now, eyes slightly drooping as a notable sign of how tired she was.

 

“ _Fine_.” She sighed, getting up and leaving. As if it was so hard.

 

And with that, I was able to pee in peace.

 

~\/~

 

“How much can I have to spend?” Christa asked at the entrance of the costume store, eyes sparkling with excitement. She had gotten up at 6 this morning just to ‘get ready’ for the day. If getting ready meant trying to shake me awake to start the shower and then, while in the shower, deciding to switch to a bath. Which was all fun and good, but that wasn’t even the worst part. The girl then decided, for what reason, I don’t know, to go knocking on everyone’s doors at about 6:30 AM and yelling ‘TRICK OR SWEETS’ as loud as she could. I got several written complaints by 8 o’clock and what could possibly be an eviction notice. I wouldn’t know, I didn’t open it when it fell through the mail chute. Just tossed it in the closet with the rest of my useless mail.

 

“Since you’ve been good outside of the apartment -”

 

Sasha let out a chuckle, knowing every detail of Christa’s little adventure this morning.

 

“You can have fifty bucks. Go wild, kid.”

 

She almost _sprinted_ into the large store, brushing past some overly exuberant ‘sale’ signs. God, if Halloween wasn’t my _favourite_ time of year. It didn’t help much that Christa insisted we’d left at 8 to get to the store just before it opened, and that even early in the morning the store was packed.

 

Sasha and I stepped inside, taking the piss out of some awful costumes just inside the entryway. Who wanted to be _Sexy Grinch_ for Halloween, anyway?

 

After about 10 minutes, Christa came running back and with many bags on coat hangers in her arms and told me to hold out my own arms as she thrust the costumes into them. There had to be at _least_ fifteen. She’d run off just as quickly.

 

Taking a few off of the top, Sasha inspected the names.

 

“Zombie Baby, Underwater Best Friend costume and a picture of a pirate with ‘Butt Surprise’.” She read out, trying not to laugh. I, too, decided to amuse myself with these really bad costume names.

 

“I’ve got…” I began, snorting at the names. “Norwegian Maiden Princess, Darling Clipper Hands and Finding Clownfish.”

 

Sasha began putting the costumes back onto some racks. She knew as damn well as I did that I wasn’t going to buy her all these costumes. She could get two costumes and a wig, and that was it.

 

The smaller girl came back minutes later with some more costumes in hand, bursting at the seams with energy and excitement as she practically bounced up and down, her poofy skirt knocking some decorations off of a shelf next to her. She didn’t even take notice.

 

“Alright, let’s see what you’ve got, kid.”

 

She held out three more costumes as she focused and slowly read them out to us.

 

“Mmm…onst.er Girl?” Sasha nodded in approval, much to Christa’s happiness.

 

“Blue Wit-ckha…?”

 

“That one’s ‘Witch’. The c and h make a ‘ch’ sound.” I explained apathetically. Christa nodded, a knowing expression on her face.

 

“Blue witch, then, and… I don’t know how to say these ones, but the girl on the front is pretty.” She told us, holding up the last one.

 

“Sexy Policewoman.” Sasha laughed as she read it aloud. I ripped it out of Christa’s hands immediately.

 

“No. No. No, no. We don’t touch anything with ‘Sexy’ on it, ok? That’s bad. Do not touch them if you see that word. That’s a bad word.” I frantically told her, tossing it onto the nearest shelf. Sasha was pretty much pissing herself.

 

“Shit! Sorry!” Christa apologised, frowning.

 

“Don’t swear, either!” I scolded further as Sasha knelt down on the floor, her face as red as a tomato.

 

“Tonight should be eventful,” She looked up at me, wiping her teary eyes as she finished her laughing spree.

 

Knowing Christa, everything was eventful, and Halloween would be no exception.

 

~\/~

 

I’m not sure when or how, but we had run right into another one. Another, dumb, Magical idiot. And it all began when Sasha insisted on inviting Mikasa and her roommate to trick-or-treating with us.

 

“ _It’d be good for you to meet her before you hand in a resume. It’s biased hiring. I did it. That’s how you got hired at my joint.”_

_“Gee, thanks, Sash. Can always count on you to lift me up. Now, could you please_ actually _lift me up while I unscrew this lightbulb?”_

_Due to a lack of a ladder, Sasha entwined her fingers together and put them low enough for me to stand on. And for someone who sure ate a lot and did next-to-zero exercise, she was pretty damn strong._

_I reached for the light bulb and held one hand firmly on the roof as I balanced myself on Sasha’s hands._

_“But anyway, it’d be good for you to meet her. You’ve gotta be on your best behaviour, too, cause I sure did talk you up a lot. I mean, a_ lot _, Ymir.”_

_As I gently started unscrewing the light bulb, Sasha moved a little. In a moment of slight panic, I put both of my hands on the roof and didn’t remove them until I felt secure. The light bulb, on the other hand, clearly did not feel secure, because it fell to the ground and shattered._

_“SASHA,” I began angrily. She had kept going on that whole time, and I had only realised then that I had tuned her out. It looked like she hadn’t even noticed the shattered glass on the floor next to her, she was so deep in her one-person conversation._

_“She’s been looking forward to meeting you, too – Oh my God, you dropped it?!”_

_“NO THANKS TO YOU, IDIOT.”_

_“But hey, won’t this be a more effective way of reminding Reiner? I mean, now he’ll have to buy you a new bulb or something as well.”_

_I groaned at her stupidity._

 

 

“So,” The black haired girl started, keeping an eye on the brown haired boy now striking up a storm with Christa.

 

“I hear you’re good with scrap-booking.”

 

Sasha was over with them, and even though I knew she couldn’t see the filthy glare I was giving her, I still felt like it was appropriate.

 

“I promise that 9 out of 10 things she’s told you are not true. The tenth thing probably is. I’m able to glue two sheets of paper together, and that’s about as far as my craft making skills go.” I confessed. Mikasa wasn’t so bad, I figured, since she didn’t like talking that much unless it was to Eren or Sasha. It made it both easier and harder for me to appeal to her.

 

“Can you work a register and show up to shifts on time?” She pushed, throwing her scarf over her shoulder. Then, she pulled her smooth ebony hair back into a low ponytail and sighed. Oh boy, did I get an ‘emo’ vibe from her. She probably had a scene phase in high school.

 

“I can work a register like a dream. I walk to work, too, so I won’t get stuck in traffic and I’ll have no excuses for being late ever.” I praised myself as Mikasa nodded slightly.

 

“I have a steady flow of money coming in from some relatives and I’ve only ever needed one employee besides myself, but he’s hopeless. He can’t work the register at all. He’s good at selling things, though. I’ll give him that.”

 

“What’s pay like?”

 

“You know ‘Ackerman Stationary’?”

 

My eyes widened in shock.

 

“I am Mikasa Ackerman.”

 

“Oh, man, no offence, but when Sasha said ‘my friend who owns a craft store’, I honestly thought she meant, like, a leased building like the one her pet shop is based in and no customers with Dollar Shop prices. Oh my God.”

 

To clear up any confusion, Ackerman Stationary is a _really_ goddamn expensive and nice store uptown. There is only one store in the whole country. As for affordability, I wouldn’t be able to afford _pencil shavings_ if they came from her franchise. And I work two jobs.

 

“You’d be making three times the minimum wage you’d be making if you were at Titan Burgers, and that’s only part-time work. If you can prove yourself to be an excellent employee of upstanding ability, you’d make more. You would have no need for _multiple jobs_ , either.” She hinted to me, looking towards Sasha.

 

“That sounds like a pretty fucking good offer, Ackerman.” I said in awe, still thinking about how much it would improve my financial situation. However, I felt kind of bad for leaving Sasha and her store. It was hard enough for her to just get _customers_ , how on this earth was she going to get more employees?

 

Pushing aside my guilt, I held out my hand.

 

“I’ll take your trial shift, then. I promise I won’t let you down.” It was a shaky promise at best, but if it was going to help myself get out of the mud, who was I to say no to such an opportunity?

 

I hadn’t really noticed during mine and Mikasa’s conversation, but the three _children_ had gone on without us and were halfway up the street. I could hear Christa and the brown-haired boy’s loud voices yelling ‘TRICKS OR SWEETS’ or ‘TRICK OR FEET’. They were scaring off the actual children.

 

“There’s one more condition,” Mikasa said, looking towards me.

 

“Mm?”

 

“Christa… she’s a Magical Girl, isn’t she?”

 

I felt my jaw drop.

 

“How do you…?”

 

“Eren said he could feel someone was nearby and ran off. That’s how we ran into you guys. I’m glad Christa’s not as hostile as the others, though. Eren’s only been here for five or six months, and I gather that they must mature or do something of the sort, because the last Magical Girl we ran into beat Eren into the ground.”

 

“So Eren is one too, then? A Magical boy?”

 

Mikasa nodded.

 

“Y’know, that person you described just before sounds like someone I know, but I just can’t put my finger on it.”

 

“She seemed like she really knew what she doing and was well aware of her surroundings and how to use them to her advantage. The only thing Eren could do was his best. He still insists on going back to fight her, but I haven’t caught her name. She seems like a very quiet and reserved person when she’s not beating up Eren. That, I cannot forgive. I’ll personally kick her ass myself the next time we see her.”

 

The person I had been thinking of slipped my mind as Christa and Eren came running up to us, Sasha not far behind. Her skinny jeans she’d chosen to wear limited her movement significantly.

 

“So… much…” She puffed as put her hands on her knees. So much what? We’ll never know, because she didn’t really feel like elaborating for us.

 

“Ymir, look!” Christa held out her bucket that was 3/4 full, pushing up her witch hat that was far too big for her head and kept falling over her face. She had picked ‘pale blue witch’ after the sexy cop nonsense, but the only size that they had was a medium, which was too big on her. Using some duct tape, however, that problem was easily fixed. Fixing the hat was a lost cause.

 

 I picked out a _Mars Bar_ from the top and unwrapped it, much to Christa’s dismay. After taking a bite of half of it, I handed the rest to her and her eyes lit up. She came and wrapped her arms around me.

 

The Eren kid seemed to mimic her, trying to get Mikasa to eat half of one of his chocolate bars, but she wouldn’t have it. He looked a little upset, though, so she took some candy corn and smiled at him. He seemed content with that, and grabbed Christa’s arm and the two were off again, scaring the neighbourhood.

 

I felt bad for them, not having the full ‘Halloween’ experience. It wouldn’t have been much fun trick-or-treating in a city where not many people celebrate it. How they had managed to accumulate so much candy was beyond me.

 

“So, your condition?” I turned to Mikasa, who spat out the candy corn in her mouth onto the empty road.

 

“You have to bring Christa along.”

 

“’Have to’?”

 

“Eren gets pretty lonely in the shop, even with our other employee there. Having someone like Christa, who understands him, would probably be very beneficial for him. Based on experience, I think you might find later on that being separated from Christa for too long isn’t good for either of you.” She warned apathetically, looking into my eyes in a way that almost terrified me.

 

“You don’t say,” I furrowed my brows in confusion and discomfort.

 

I thought seriously about Mikasa’s statement for the rest of that night, wondering what kind of situations she and Eren must have gotten into for her to speak so solemnly about something like that, and figured I didn’t want to find out.

 

~\/~

 

Christa was still bumping with energy when we approached the apartment building. She was a little sad at having to say goodbye to Eren, but was just as excited to knock on Marco’s door.

 

I pushed open the rusty front doors to the apartment complex and told Christa ‘go wild’. She ran up to Jean and Marco’s door and gave three light knocks. She looked like she was going to piss herself with excitement when Marco answered the door.

 

“Ah, Christa and Ymir. Lovely to see you!” He greeted with a freckled smile before looking a little forlorn.

 

“Unfortunately, Jean _ate_ all our candy,” Marco explained as he looked back into the room with a ticked-off expression, no doubt aimed at Jean. He turned back to us and gave that happy smile once more. “But I’m sure I can rustle up something for you guys. Gimme a sec,”

 

It took him a few minutes, but he came back with some teabags.

 

“I know it isn’t much, but these really help with refreshing you and cleaning out your-“

 

  
“Wow! Thanks, Marco!” I cut him off. I wasn’t really big on tea in the first place, and if I had to listen to him talk about seventy kinds of tea like Christa said he did, I would rather not.

 

He put them in Christa’s now overflowing basket and gave her a pat on the head.

 

“I’m making vegan brownies tomorrow, so make sure you guys stop by, alright?” Marco informed us as we walked away. Christa pushed her witch hat up once again as we approached the stairs before holding onto my hand.

 

“Ymir?”

 

“Yeah, Christa?”

 

“Are we gonna see Eren again?”

 

“Probably.”

 

We had come to the third set of stairs when she asked another question.

 

“Can we go see him and Mikasa tomorrow?”

 

“Probably not. I have to work tomorrow again. But I might start working with Mikasa, so then you can see Eren all the time.” I told her as I pulled my phone out of my back pocket and checked the time. 11:51 PM.

 

“Y’know, Christa,” I started, grinning down at her. “I think we have time to trick-or-treat at one more place before Halloween is over.”

 

~\/~

 

As I jammed the key into the lock on my apartment door, I egged Christa on to knock on the door.

 

“Do you remember what I told you to say?”

 

She nodded enthusiastically before rapping her knuckles on the peeled paint of the door three times. It opened slowly, revealing Reiner, who looked worse-for-wear with bags under his eyes and messy hair. He wiped his nose before looking down at Christa.

 

“Trick or sweets,” She beamed up at him, handing him a candy bar. He took it gratefully as he muttered a thanks. “When will you fix our fucking light?”

 

I couldn’t hold it in then, sputtering as he looked taken aback by the innocent girl’s swearing. He peered around the door when he heard my sudden laughter,

 

“You,” He began with a mouthful of chocolate. It stained his teeth a horrid colour.

 

“Thanks for the glass shards. I’ll never forget the moment I held the envelope above my face and opened it only to have broken glass fall onto my face and chest.”

 

“Who the _fuck_ opens envelopes above their faces, Reiner? I’m just asking you to fix my damn hallway light, since you have neglected to do so for almost a month and a half.” I reminded him, still chuckling a little between every few words.

 

He slammed the door after saying goodnight to Christa as I pushed my own door open, using my phone’s flashlight to guide Christa and myself down the hallway. Her energy had pretty much burnt out just walking up the stairs, and I don’t think we even made it to the bed before we both passed out on the couch, tired from the big night.

 

The next morning, I had reason to believe Eren had taught Christa how to use mobile phone cameras, since she had taken many of herself in her costume.

 

I didn’t really mind.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> YOWZAS!!!
> 
> I can't believe I finished this a day late!! What else can you expect from a top procrastinator (the only thing I'm good at, really). Again, this is probably really rushed, blah blah, but I am a serial procrastinator and these things happen. I will apologise for any inconvenience and lack of spoop.
> 
> Thank you for reading and I hope you all had a happy halloween!!!
> 
> \- Lauren x


	9. Chapter Eight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ymir finally gets a damn job (that isnt part time) and Christa and Eren build a box fort. Mikasa is very vague.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yaoi wowies!! 
> 
> It's been almost a full year since the first chapter of Blossom was published. How cool is that?! I honestly never expected anyone to even read this fic, let alone like it or have it included in any lists/recommendations. I wish I could personally thank each and every single one of you for taking the time to read and laugh at the things Ymir says or 'aw' at Christa's innocence (she's like a tiny lamb in a big city), but since I can't, this will have to do.
> 
> So thank YOU, reader. Thank you for giving Blossom a chance and thanks for the kudos (that you know you wanna leave) ;^)
> 
> Also, I'm really sorry that I couldn't get a Thanksgiving, Christmas or New Years chapter in. I (extremely clumsily) dropped my phone in a pool and lost most of my drafts for said chapters. But that doesn't mean that they won't come! They will.
> 
> Just probably in, like, June. Or August.
> 
> 1 month in Blossom time is like 7 months in our time. I'm a very lazy writer.
> 
> Again, thank you for reading!! I wish you all a happy holiday period.
> 
> \- Lauren c:

_The night was restless above us as we laid under the stars, hands intertwined and not seeming to be letting go anytime soon. She gave my hand a squeeze and as I looked over at her, she smiled widely._

_'Falling in love is a beautiful thing,' She said quietly, her crystalline blue eyes boring into my own. She didn't break eye contact, nor did I, and we sat for a few minutes just gazing at each other._

_'But perhaps,' She began, letting go of my hand and pushed herself to her feet. I too sat up straightly, suddenly alert to her words. She seemed... panicked. Distressed._

_'It is not for me.' The blond girl concluded as she wiped the grass and excess dirt off of her skirt. It fell onto my face and I sneezed as she started to walk towards the car._

_'Excuse me?'_

_'I don't think I'm in love with you.' The small girl stated, quite straight-faced, as she glared into my eyes._

_The city lights and stars and trees suddenly dissolved the romantic mood into one of depression, of angst. She opened the faded red car door, fitting herself perfectly into the cracked leather seats. Even under the faded light I could tell that her expression was emotionless; a contrast to the bright and bubbly girl she usually showed to people._

_'I'm sorry.'_

_'Don't be. We were just trialing this. It's not like I actually expected you to fall in love with me.' I chuckled sadly. A blatant lie._

_'My thoughts exactly.' She shut the door and it clicked into place as she fiddled with the radio, a static sound making itself known over the 1962 radio. It was only several years old but seemed like it needed to be checked out._

_It hurt. It hurt a lot. Watching her leave as she sat in her car, leaving me and my own car behind, knowing that it was the last time we would speak to each other again._

_But all that was a big charade put on by her._

_We would speak to each other again._

_~\/~_

"You got your coat, Christa?"

The small girl nodded sleepily as she produced a tan-coloured coat from her backpack, reluctantly slipping her small arms into the oversized sleeves and pulling it around her before pushing the buttons through the button holes.

I took one final look at the street around us as some browned and yellowed leaves fell and flew in the wind, bringing an icy chill about the air. Autumn was well on its way, which reminded me to pick up an electric heater on the way home.

The street was quiet for a five AM start.

Honestly you wouldn't believe it at this point, but I was thoroughly surprised. Surprised that it was so silent. Usually, in the downtown slums where I lived, you had drunks going off and drag car races going on twenty-four/seven, but in the uptown, it was so quiet. The occasional business man or business woman would pass us every now and then, but even they were quiet, only the click-clack of their shoes on the pavement sounded amongst all the silence.

I looked up at the building once more. _Ackerman Stationary._

I'd only ever caught glances of it when driving past with Sasha, or in pictures in magazines, but now that I was standing in front of it, I had one thought; HUGE.

For one, the building was two-storeys. The painting was a matte white but retained no stains from rainfall or litter. It had some large black marble pillars out front and revolving doors to get inside.

All this for stationary.

It was a huge company though, despite only having one building, and Mikasa must've been filthy rich, but I still couldn't wrap my head around it. Soon, someone was going to tell me that one of the huge surroundings skyscrapers had a business inside that owned the whole building that dealt with supplying dog toys.

"You gotta be on your best behaviour. You brought a colouring book, right?"

Christa was dozing off already. She'd been clinging to me like a sloth since we began the half hour trek, but somehow she still wasn't awake. Which is suspicious, seeing as though she made me carry her most of the way here on my back.

"I'm serious, Christa. Best behaviour. Or else."

"Yeah, I've got it, Ymir. You treat me like a kid." She whined quietly, grabbing onto my hand. Hers were clammy but it didn't stop her from holding on as tight as she damn could.

"That's because you act like a kid, short stuff. I'll get the memo when you start paying board and stop living off my food."

Taking in a deep breath, I pushed the revolving door forward and stepped inside, pulling Christa with me.

It was even more stunning and breathtaking on the inside than on the out.

There were black wooden floorboards that shone as if they'd only be cleaned minutes before under the many downlights in the high ceiling. There was a large table in the middle that had sale and damaged items that sold for cheaper than retail price, but I still wouldn't be able to afford it. There were concave shelves on either side of the door, and they showcased many many rows of pens and pencils, test books in front tired out by the many names scribbled into them. But looking past the grandeur, it was easy to notice that the actual room itself was... quite narrow. The shelving didn't help to hide it.

Built into the wall on the other side of the room was a large staircase with decorative turtles carved into the wooden handrail, with thin wooden pillars as the banister.

Of course, critic Ymir comes out in the best of places, but she doesn't come easily. Take that out of context if you want.

Christa was gazing around in awe at the modern set-up, and we both stood in silence for a moment before there was a large noise coming from upstairs.

"Eren-!"

"Stop it! I've had breakfast! You don't have to baby me all the time!"

"Eren, just eat your-"

"No!"

"EREN."

Christa perked up at the name and looked around, sleepy eyes suddenly widening. She had some sleep in the corners of her eyes, so I wiped it for her before realising that a) GROSS and b) Where do I wipe this? Why did I do that?

There was a clamour from above and then Eren was flying down the stairs, Mikasa in tow, slighty slower because of the heels she was wearing. She paused when she saw us, and then brushed off her skirt as she made her way down.

"Hi. We weren't expecting you so early." She said apathetically, reminding me of a certain next-door neighbour.

"Always in a hurry to get a job." I laughed nervously. She didn't shake though, and Eren took Christa by the hand and they both ran merrily off up the stairs.

"Don't make a mess!" I shouted out after her as Mikasa reached into her pocket.

"I'm thinking of opening a shop downtown. I was wondering if after today you'd be able to man that station for me. It'd be a lot smaller, but I've been advised by a close family friend who deals in business to expand. Sasha said you were reliable and honest, so I hope all goes to plan." Mikasa blurted, a hint of warning in her voice towards the end. She pulled out a name-tag that was blank, and handed me a marker.

Considering it took her a solid half minute to find the pin in her pocket, I started to wonder if maybe she just had all this stationary in her pockets. Like, not only would that be helpful, but she would get stuff for free. That'd be wicked. Would I get stuff for free if she decided I was good enough to work here?

"You don't have to start until about nine, so you have a lot of time to kill. You can start by restocking the upstairs kids section. The supplies are in some boxes marked 'K' in the back room. If you can't find it, Eren will help you.

"I have a meeting soon, so I'll be back around eight-thirty."

She also thrust a key ring and keys into my hands, a tad frantically.

"And don't let Eren near the sticker department."

"Ok?"

Mikasa pushed the revolving door and her coat had gotten stuck in the slot where the glass met the wall. She tugged on the coat and didn't seem to care about the ripped strip of fabric that fell to the ground as she left.

Now that is a hardcore businesswoman.

I guess I should explore the place. If I'm gonna work here I'm gonna have to know my way around.

I turned on my heel, still a little stunned at Mikasa's hardcore move, and stared at the room in front of me. Once you worked out it was narrow, it didn't seem like such a huge room at all. In fact, it wasn't even spectacularly wonderful.

Maybe the reason I was in so much awe was because I'd only ever seen not-as-nice buildings.

I headed straight for the staircase that Mikasa and Eren had thundered down and put a hand on the handrail, which had to be limestone. As I looked down at the stairs, I also noticed a suave red carpet.

"No, you put the boxes like this, Christa-"

"But it looks so much better like this."

"But it'll tumble down if we have it like that! We need to fit inside it."

God, what were they doing up there?

I took a step, and then another one, and eventually I was walking up the stairs, like a normal person who felt comfortable in such an expensive place.

When I got to the top level, there were a few more shelves and beyond those shelves was a door marked 'Staff Room - Don't Enter'.

I entered.

Upon entering, I saw Eren and Christa fiddling with some overly large cardboard boxes. That must have been what they were arguing over.

"Ymir!"

I stared at the blonde for about half a minute before she kept speaking.

"Do you think these boxes look better when you stack them up or when they're on the side?" She asked, moving the boxes accordingly to show me.

"I think the boxes would look better if you put them where they belonged, honestly."

Eren had an absolutely thunder-struck look on his face.

"Wow, Christa!" He looked at her, grabbing her hands. "Ymir is so mature and grown-up!"

"Yeah, I know!" Christa marvelled back, an intense look of pride spread across her face. "Ymir, you're so resbonsimple." Christa said confidently. So innocent. So pure.

The smile on her face was so big as she said it that I couldn't even bring myself to point out that she'd said it wrong.

"That's a big word for you, small fry."

"I know some big words!" Eren exclaimed, throwing up a hand in determination. I pointed to him and nodded.

He cleared his throat.

"Destructive."

I gave a sarcastic clap but he looked ecstatic anyway.

"So, uh, Eren," I began, clasping my hands together as the pair looked at me. "Where are these boxes I'm supposed to unpack?"

"Mikasa puts them under the big desk so I don't wreck them." The brown-haired boy pointed to a desk up the back. I followed his direction and Christa grabbed onto my leg as I passed, so I dragged her over as well.

As I leaned down to pick up one of the boxes, I saw a familiar face on a 'Banned' poster.

"Is that... is that Annie?!"

Upon closer inspection, it was, indeed, Annie. You really can't miss the nose. Or the wannabe emo hair.

"God, that's fucking hilarious!"

I grinned widely before a splitting laughter erupted from within.

"Christa, get a load of this! Annie's banned from the store!"

A worried look crossed her face.

"Annie? Next door Annie?" She questioned, standing up from her position on the floor.

"You guys know Annie?" Eren asked confusedly.

"Yeah, she's my neighbour. Why?" I informed him, and that playful look from before was wiped from both of their faces.

"We don't like her very much. She's really mean." Eren told us, diverting his attention. "She doesn't know?" He looked to Christa.

Christa shook her head.

"Don't know what?"

"It's nothing," Christa looked up, giving me a very obvious fake smile. "But you should start unpacking those boxes or Mikasa is gonna fire you."

Pulling a huge box out from under the desk, I nodded.

"Yeah, I guess so."

~\/~

One thing I had come to notice about Ackerman Stationary from my whole eight-hours of experience was that it was always packed full of people. Some people just came in to buy notepads, others came in to buy thirty seven different kinds of $12 erasers. Some people came just to admire the glamour of the place, others came to get inscriptions on their pens for loved ones.

I think I had been told at some point or other that Mikasa was the only one who worked the store, but that wasn't true. There was Nanaba (Or, as I called her, 'Banana') who came by to clean up during lunch time, and Mike, who did personalisations in a small cart near the back of the store.

Another thing I had noticed was that at least 95% of the customers were doing Christmas shopping, which kind of irked me. It was only early November. The other 5% were shopping for Thanksgiving.

I had received questions of every caliber during the day, too. Sometimes there was only one person asking about where to find the children's section, and at other times, there were eight shoppers fighting for my attention while I was talking to someone else.

Retail was always an aspect I hadn't had much experience in, but nothing I'd ever worked in before had gone anywhere near this level of frustration and stress.

It really got me thinking about how Mikasa had managed with just herself and the other two for so long.

She had, of course, come back to help me work for most of the day, which was a relief. The amount of customers was completely overwhelming and I probably would've crushed under pressure, but Mikasa helped take most of the load off.

However, even with her help, I was still swamped.

"How are you finding it so far?" She had asked during the lunch break.

"Tiring."

"Then at least you know you're doing your job right. If you aren't working hard, then you're hardly working."

"Haha," I laughed apathetically. "I love ebook memes, too."

She must'nt've detected my sarcasm, because her face lit up.

"Have you seen the one where..."

I tuned her out as I watched Eren and Christa rebuild their cardboard fort bigger and better, arguing about where to put the boxes.

We were all sitting in the staff room, and it was getting to late afternoon, and I had drilled it into Christa's head that bedtime was seven o'clock after dinner and some TV time. It would take at least an hour to walk home, especially with Christa's utter reluctance to walk with a chill in the air. Not only that, but I still needed an electric heater.

"... 'No one wants a small glass of wine unless they've already had too many big ones' and I feel like I can relate to that."

"So you only show emotion when you're talking about memes, huh?"

Mikasa paused to look at me, the passion in her eyes fading as her face reverted back to that deadpan look.

"Perhaps. But anyway, while I've got your attention, here's your cash pay for today. I think I'll hire you. You've exhibited excellent skills and your experience is incredible." Mikasa said, leaning back in the reclining office chair she was in and shut her eyes. She lazily handed me a small envelope, which she hadn't sealed.

I lifted the flap and took a peek inside.

Oh boy, that was a lot of green.

"Thanks. God knows I need some money at the moment." I thanked sincerely, standing from the seat.

"We have to go now, if we're gonna make it back in time for dinner. When do you want me to come in again?" I yawned, stretching. I walked over to Eren and Christa and tapped the smaller girl on the shoulder to get her attention.

"I'll give you a call. I know you're balancing a few other jobs as well, and I do have another employee. He's just not - well, great at his job, but he tries. Make sure you get home safe." Mikasa farewelled, the robot within taking over as her tone matched her face.

"Yeah," I pulled Christa up from the floor. "See you."

~\/~

Christa and I sat in front of the TV as the news rolled, fast food burgers in hand. She was taking a sip of her drink when I asked her something.

"Did you have fun today?"

"Yes. I like hanging out with Eren." She admitted innocently, placing her drink on the floor next to her.

"That's good, that's good." I replied, voice monotone.

"But it seems like you and Eren are hiding something from me."

She looked over, confused.

"What do you mean?"

"When I mentioned Annie today, the two of you dropped your excitement like a steaming potato gem. Something is going on with her, and you two know about it. Is she a Magical Girl?"

Christa shook her head.

"No, she's not."

"Then what's so weird about her?"

Christa gulped.

"She's just mean, is all. She's not very nice."

She turned her attention back to the TV as the weather came on. I continued to glare at her.

"Look, Ymir! It's going to snow this weekend! Maybe we can get Eren and Marco and go to the park!"

I still had a weird feeling in my gut. She leaned against my shoulder and continued to munch her greasy burger loudly in my ear as she focused her eyes on the TV.

Christa wouldn't lie to me, would she?


	10. Chapter Nine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> 'No Thanksgiving' Says Ymir.  
> 'Yes Thanksgiving?' Replies Sasha.  
> 'What is Thanksgiving?' Asks Christa.  
> 'I swear to God I'm not gay' Exclaims Reiner.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HOLY HECK THIS IS BELATED AS HELL. I think I started writing this around the start of December 2015 and I was like 'Wow if I pump out a chapter a week we can get to the Christmas special before Christmas!!' and... you guessed it. Belated as HECK. Then it was New Years and I was like 'Yeah let's end the year with a bang!!' and... I procrastinated. Then it was @Miiyamuras's birthday and I was like 'HECK YEAH BIRTHDAY PRESENT!!' and even though she got an insert it still wasn't published. Then it was the one-year anniversary of MGC and I was like 'SHIT I GOTTA DO S O M E T H I N G AT LEAST' and all this time I guess my only excuse is watching Fairy Tail, playing The Sims and writing Gajevy? I'm super sorry about this majorly belated Thanksgiving 'mini-chapter'. I tried my best. I did get a new laptop though, which means that hopefully chapters won't be five months apart anymore. I'll try not to let that happen again.
> 
> Thanks to everyone who's been reading and waiting patiently for the next update!! And happy belated birthday to Amanda and Blossom. Everyone cool? Let's get this crappy thanksgiving dinner on the road!

_There's emptiness._

_Just darkness, and black, and shadows. It's hard to see even a metre in front of me._

_How long have I been down here, in this vast and dark place? I can't even remember the last time I saw light, or the last time I felt warmth, or the last time I didn't feel so alone inside._

_But then, there's a light._

_It's bright, and it's coming right towards me, making a loud rumbling sound._

_Is this it? Is it finally going to bring me out of my eternal darkness? Will I finally be free?_

_'Move! Get out of the way!'_

_Someone pushes me, and the light speeds past us, deafeningly loud and freighted._

_'Gosh, that train would've had you if it wasn't for me,' She said, panting as she wiped her brow._

_'Train?' I asked, putting my hands to the rough gravel as I stood myself up. That's right - I was standing on the train track. But why?_

_And then, it hits me. Metaphorically, of course, it hits me like a train._

_I can remember everything, from the start of the awful week to the moment the train whirled past us, blowing hot air around. I remember being evicted, I remember losing all my money, I remember losing support from my friends, I remember sleeping on the streets, and I remember losing_ her.

 

_She was gone so suddenly, as if she never even was._

_The small blonde woman stood in front of me, hand outstretched. The woman was like an angel, with the softest looking hair and the bluest eyes I'd ever seen, like someone had personally put sapphires in her eyes. Her voice was smooth and all her words flowed into one another, and she was so gloriously beautiful just to look at. It felt like in that very moment, all the darkness and sorrow and guilt and hate within me was dissipating, making room for the light that was about to consume me and bring me to life once more._

_"Hi, I'm-"_

_The train took_ her _from me once again, and the suffering and loneliness returned as I dropped to my knees and let grief and sorrow consume me._

~\/~

"I've been having a lot of nightmares lately." I told Sasha, taking a bite of my tuna sandwich. Tuna is fucking amazing. How anyone can not like tuna is beyond me.

 

"You should see a shrink about that." Sasha told me, spooning frozen yoghurt and letting it fall back into its plastic bowl. This was her seventh attempt at a 'diet' this month - which was a little too much, considering she'd started this 'diet' business only a week ago. That's a diet for every day. I've gotta admire her willpower, though - I would've caved halfway through a salad and taken Christa to the nearest candy shop.

 

Christa.

 

"Ymir?" Sasha looked up, eyeing me cautiously.

 

_Christa._

I looked around for the small girl, who had disappeared to use the toilet and hadn't returned for several minutes. Either she was having trouble trying to tear the toilet paper again, or was being entertained by the automatic soap dispenser. I'm sure it was the former, otherwise it'd be like that scene from the Spongebob movie where they fill the bathroom with bubbles, and then-

 

"I'm back," Christa announced, practically falling back into her seat next to me.

 

Sitting in the outdoor seating of the cafe wasn't too bad. The sun was out, and it was surprisingly warm for a late November day - usually we'd have snow and torrential downpour by now. I guess, apart from my nightmares, things were looking up. That or climate change. Either or.

 

Mikasa had hired me fulltime at the downtown store (She'd bought a location, had it renovated within a few days and then gave me full reign of the place. It's crazy, the power of money) and my first pay was actually enough to last me a whole week without needing to work any shifts at the bar. Which was great, because I quit working there. You see that? I, Ymir the Constantly Unemployed, _quit_ _a job_.

 

My first paycheck from Mikasa (That woman had too much money than she knew what to do with) was actually enough for me to treat Christa to a decent dinner at a new cafe in the nice part of town. It was one of those hipster places, and she was so excited by the 'floating magic lanterns' (lights) that she requested we bought some on the way home. And you know what? I had enough money, so I did. I bought her those stupid lanterns and we strung them up above my bed, and you know what? I don't regret it. This is the first time in a long time that I've felt financially stable. I had enough to pay about $60 for a delicious dinner with dessert in a restaurant/cafe, I then bought some $20 shitty paper lanterns AND was able to pay my rent AND water bill, AND now I was shouting lunch for Sasha and Christa. Not that Christa was able to pay me back for it anyway; stupid freeloader.

 

I felt like I was finally having some control over my own life. Maybe I'd buy a shaggy rug on the way home.

 

"What are you guys doing for Thanksgiving?" Sasha asked suddenly, snapping me out of my mental boasting. What a shame, too. I still couldn't believe I was moving into the middle class.

 

"Don't celebrate it." I dismissed quickly, taking another bite of my sandwich. Christa wrinkled her nose at the smell. Her loss, 'cause I was gonna be buying a lot more tuna now that I had money. We weren't gonna be living off pasta and Titan Burgers, no sir; I was gonna take care of us (and my new tuna addiction).

 

"Aw, c'mon, Ymir - it's this weekend. You aren't even gonna tune in to the TV specials?"

 

"No. I don't like turkey, so I don't celebrate turkey day. I've got a lot to be thankful for, but I'm not going to spend it sitting at a table and stuffing myself until my shirt buttons pop, thanks very much."

 

Sasha looked mildly offended.

 

"What do you mean you 'don't like turkey'? You like tuna," She motioned disgustedly towards my sandwich, and I gave her a dramatically heartbroken look.

 

"That is a _lifestyle choice._ Stop teasing me for being a lesbian. Christa, she's teasing me for being a lesbian!"

 

I doubt Christa knew what a lesbian even _was_ , but she pouted all the same, moving her chair around so she could wrap her arms around me.

 

"It's ok, Ymir, I love you for being a lesbean."

 

You could've stuck a fork in Sasha and poured gravy over here, because _boy, did she look DONE._

 

She adjusted her shoulder bag as she stood up, leaving her plastic bowl on the metal table.

 

"I know you've never had to take a job as a waitress, Sasha, but it makes things a helluva lot easier if you take your rubbish with you. Leaving tips is also nice," I advised, pulling a $10 note out of my pocket and leaving it under a salt shaker.

 

"Ok, Miss Money-Bags," Sasha begrudgingly took her plastic bowl and left some coins before looking at me - _Happy now?_ \- and bid us farewell.

 

"Don't forget, you're working on Monday."

 

"How could I?" I said back as she started to walk away. "Mondays are puppy hair days. Because that's what Christa comes home covered in."

 

She mumbled something about Connie and turned her head back in front of her.

 

"What now?" Christa asked sweetly, looking up at me as we stood.

 

_Don't do this to me. Not now, you adorable little-_

"You wanna go look for a fluffy rug?"

 

"You said last night that we needed another box for the TV to stand on, because the one we have now is cracked and will fall on itself any minute."

 

I'd be damned if that girl wasn't getting smarter by the day.

 

"Okay then, short stuff. We'll stop in at the home centre and get a fluffy rug _and_ a TV stand." _God,_ I sounded like a soccer mom. So excited about a walk to IKEA. Disgusting. What was I becoming.

 

I walked to the canteen counter with Christa to pay for our meal. The serving lady had a plastic smile and a nametag that read 'Amanda', and looked mildly annoyed when we approached the counter. She gave out a big, dramatic huff as I put the correct amount in front her and told her what table we ate at before Christa grabbed my hand and we began the walk to IKEA.

 

"Hey, Ymir?"

 

"Yeah?"

 

"What's 'Thanksgiving'?" Christa asked, looking up at me in curiosity. Curse those big blue eyes for being so cute.

 

"Something I don't celebrate." I told her briskly, sparing a glance at her. She looked deep in thought, eyebrows furrowed so much that if she kept trying to furrow them, they'd merge and form a unibrow.

 

"Why not?" She questioned as I started walking faster. She had to run a little, but I just assumed she was ok.  I assumed everyone was ok all the time, and maybe thats part of the reason I disliked Thanksgiving; but thinking about the incident with my parents that night makes my head spin and my heart ache, so I desperately try not to. It's not hard to ignore it when you've got a family as fucked as mine.

 

"Because I don't believe in it," I began, turning a corner. We were heading towards downtown and I braced myself for the dirty pavement and lingering scent of cigarette smoke. "And because I just don't like it." I kept my eyes glued to the sky, seeing an oncoming storm cloud make its way across the city. Of course a storm cloud would ruin a perfect day.

 

"Oh." Was all she said, a little deflated.

 

"Then, what's a 'lesbean'?"

 

"That, my dear Magical Babe, is a lesson for another time."

 

<><><> 

 

"Sasha, I told you 'no'. Do you understand what 'no' means?"

 

Sasha, standing at my door, a hot turkey tucked under one arm and some plastic shopping bags of (probably more turkey; she's a stickler for that) some _unidentified food items_. It had been snowing outside for a majority of the evening and afternoon, so her oversized jacket and scarf as well as her hair was covered in little while flecks. They were smaller than the ones Christa had come back in with from the firescape earlier, so maybe the snow was easing up.

 

Christa pushed past me to take the food from Sasha's hands, probably to eat it, and muttered a quick 'hi!' before she was gone again. One glance behind me showed that she had left the items on the bench before rushing under my outstretched arm that was keeping me upright against the wall, and paused while Sasha moved out of the way. One act of kindness, I guess.

 

"Where are you going, Christa?" I called out as she began to walk down the hallway and towards the stairway. She looked back, and I noticed she had her mittens on. _Oh no. You're not playing in the snow by yourself. It's pretty fucking shady around here, and I've managed to keep you from that for almost three months. I'm not gonna subject you to that too._

_Also, those mittens were REALLY EXPENSIVE and I'm not going to let you rub them in the drain or something._

"I'm going to see Marco! He said he was gonna help me fix the hole in my sleeve!" She called back hurriedly, as she practically drifted down the stairway. I had noticed the jar of _Nutella_ she had hidden not-so-secretively behind her back.

 

Sasha walked under my still-outstretched arm and down my hallway, leaving the steaming turkey on my kitchen bench.

 

"I know you said 'no', Ymir-"

 

"Quite explicitly, actually." I cut her off, but she kept going anyway.

 

"-But no one deserves to have a shitty Thanksgiving. And you never let me bring you food or hang out with you on Thanksgiving."

 

"That's because if I let you hang out and bring food, it's like Thanksgiving!" I said exasperatedly, throwing my hands up dramatically. I began to move down the hall when there was a knock at my already-open door. Currently, the situation was out of control. Too much was happening at once for me to process. Where's Christa to hold my hand when I'm stressed and need her?

 

"Ymir,"

 

I turned to see Reiner and Bertoldt at the door, dressed all fancy.

 

"On your way to the fancy gay club, Braun?" I asked teasingly, scratching at the back of my neck.

 

"If that were the case, I would've invited you." He teased back, setting a toolbox on the ground in front of him as Annie appeared too, looking as sullen and joyless ever. Truly the life of the party.

 

"We're here to fix your light before we head out to dinner. Happy Thanksgiving." He announced proudly. Well, it was about _damn time_.

 

"You know what?"

 

Reiner ignored me as he pulled a bulb out of the toolbox. It was in a box marked 'IN CASE OF YMIR'.

 

"I take it back."

 

He stared into my eyes for a second, perhaps hopeful that this was the end of our frenemy-schtick. Perhaps it was. Maybe I wanted to be Reiner's friend - to finally move past this immature relationship we had. It was about time that we both grew up, for our own and everyone around us' sakes. We were both adults, after all; it was time we began to act like adults.

 

"I think the fancy gay club should give you a lifetime membership."

 

Not a chance, Braun.

 

He rolled his eyes as he unscrewed the bulb, and gestured for Bertoldt to hand him a screwdriver. The darker man complied. Those two worked like pieces of a puzzle. If Reiner wasn't so damn straight, maybe they could've been a thing or whatever.

 

"Bert," Annie spoke quietly from behind the tallest of the three, wrapping one of her arms around one of his. "We're going to miss the reservation if we don't hurry up. Then we have to go to the storehouse."

 

"Storehouse?" I glanced at her. Instead of replying, Annie gave me a death glare. Quite the charmer.

 

"...and... done. Happy Thanksgiving. Enjoy your new light, and stop bugging me about it." Reiner concluded, and it was at that point I realised he didn't even use a ladder. Curse tall people.

 

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever. Get out, before your straight-man scent intrudes on my gay ones."

 

"Maybe that's what you need around here. It smells kind of musty. Oh, right, before I forget-"

 

Reiner handed me a slip of paper he'd struggled to pull out of his pocket. Why did his pockets even need to be that deep? And where did he get such a suave suit? It was here I noticed that the trio actually looked quite well-dressed and - I dare say - rich. If they had the money to dress like _that_ then they definitely had the money to move out of this shithole apartment block.

 

"This is for Christa." He told me with a wink. Said girl was coming up the stairs as the three were leaving, and said hello to Reiner and Bertoldt. She didn't say anything to Annie, instead keeping her head down.

 

I'd forgotten about that.

 

"What's for me?" Christa asked, peering at the slip in my hands. I, too, peered, only to be disgusted.

 

_XXXX-XXXX-XX_

_-Reiner x_

"Nothing anymore." I said as I ripped it up in my hands, shoving the remnants in my jean pocket.

 

"Well, look!" Christa said excitedly, throwing her arms out to the side. I glanced up at her to notice that she had a new dress on, the old one folded over one of her arms.

 

This new dress was almost entirely white, and wasn't as poofy as her old one. A white pinafore was contrasted against a light blue long-sleeved button-up shirt, and had little bow accents along the bottom of the sleeves. The pinafore reached to her knees, and I realised that whilst not as poof as the previous dress, it was far glitterier. A little too much for my taste. It was rubbing off onto the floor. She was also now wearing some impossibly lighter-blue tights, accompanied by white flat shoes. It wouldn't be long before she dirtied them, I could tell. Even so, she looked nice. It was definitely refreshing to see her in something other than a flouncy blue dress that got her stuck in doorways and leather boots.

 

"You look nice, short stuff. Marco make that for you?"

 

Christa nodded, playing with the hem of the pinafore as she shoved her old dress off to me. Typical magical girl behaviour.

 

"He said that because winter was coming, I needed a new dress. He said that weather affects us differently than it does to humans, so he helped me make a new one. He did most of the work, but I helped sew here!"

 

She tried to reach around the back of the dress for a few moments. When that proved futile, Christa pulled one sleeve down to show me the button on the back. Despite what I know would have been her _best efforts_ , she didn't do too well a job. It was no wonder Marco did most of the work.

 

"You did a beautiful job, Christa."

 

She beamed innocently, putting the strap back over her shoulder.

 

_You're killin' me, kid._

"Dinner's served and ready to go!" Sasha called out from down the hall, and Christa grabbed my hand and ran excitedly towards the smell of turkey and steamed corn.

 

Coming into the living space/kitchen, I could see that Sasha had set up three meals around my dining table, and had even bought some table decorations. And by table decorations, I mean some plastic candles and a porcelain turkey that had 'gooble' written on the base. But she had made an effort, and for someone who never really had much effort presented to them, I could appreciate it.

 

“Sasha…” I began in a heartfelt tone, holding my hand across my chest dramatically. I did my best to look like I was on the verge of tears. I put my hand out to touch her shoulder, and Sasha looked almost entirely too proud of herself. Now, this was something that Ol’ Mama Ymir could fix.

 

“I can’t believe…” I paused, turning my head to stare into her eyes. She beamed widely.

I slapped her.

 

“That you didn’t listen to me, once again.”

 

Christa giggled as Sasha held a hand to her face.

 

“It’s _turkey day._ Live a little, Ymir.”

 

“I’ll live a little when I’m dead.”

 

“Har-har,” Sasha laughed sarcastically. “I didn’t come out all this way and make all this food to not eat it, though. You better appreciate that I did this. Of my own free will, by the way.” She said, pulling out a chair and plonking herself down in it. I couldn’t even have five seconds before she had a knife in one hand and a fork in the other, cutting into some turkey.

 

“I specifically told you-” I was getting a little tired of this as I pulled a chair out for Christa, and figured that it was nap time with my favourite magical girl after surprise turkey day dinner. “- not to come and do this. But y’know what? Screw it. There’s a huge-ass buffet table in my kitchen, and I’ll be damned if I’m not going to dig the fuck in. Thanks for cooking, bitch.”

 

“You’re welcome,” Sasha said with a stuffed mouth. “Bitch.”

 

I sat myself on a chair and began to spoon mashed potatoes and vegetables on my plate. I guess it was nice that Sasha came over and cooked for us, and I could see some Thanksgiving movie specials in the plastic bag she’d brought the food in, and a tub of ice-cream (typical Sasha, really). Maybe this Thanksgiving wouldn’t be as bad as all my previous ones.

 

“Anyone got a deck of cards?”

**Author's Note:**

> hi im lauren and i like yumikuri. i like yumikuri so much that i decide to make a cool au for it. in fact, a couple people like this au so much that they draw art for it!! so im very proud of my mgc (magical girl christa) au and the positive attention it's gotten and i hope youre enjoying the story so far! ♡


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